Tim Hortons Worker Performs CPR on Unconscious Man in Parking Lot Until EMT Arrives
March 6 was much like any other day in New Minas, Nova Scotia. Alicia Smith, 23, a supervisor at Tim Hortons, was on task when a worried customer came running in just before lunchtime.
A man had collapsed in the parking lot and hit his head against a car as he fell. The man was a well-known local, auto repairman Ron Dill.
The 70-year-old wasn’t breathing. Smith quickly jumped into action, taking over CPR from someone who didn’t quite know what they were doing.
“I ran out right away just on instinct,” Smith later told The Chronicle Herald. “The main thing was just trying to keep calm with the situation at hand, so I had the clear head and was able to keep on going.”
“I was able to get him to take one breath … then it was like ‘OK, he’s breathing,’ but then he wasn’t again.”
“The adrenaline, I guess, you could say kicked in and I just rolled with it. Afterward, I just took a moment to myself out back. It’s not the easiest situation to be in. It’s not something you have to do every day at Tim Hortons.”
The paramedics who arrived and took over told Smith that her actions had helped ensure that the man had a chance.
“It’s a pretty good feeling, just being there and able to help and now there’s a real good chance that he’s actually going to be able to make it and live longer for his family and friends,” Smith said.
The manager, owner and relatives of Dill’s were all impressed with and thankful for Smith’s actions. Dill’s nephew Arnold Rafuse stopped by later to really drive home how much Smith had helped.
“It’s lucky that it happened at Tim Hortons, where there was people there,” Rafuse said. “If it had of happened at home, he probably would have never made it… by the time the ambulance got back to Canning.”
“She gave him a new life. They told him he’s a medical miracle.”
After reaching the hospital, doctors placed Dill in an induced coma. He stayed there for a week, then they moved him to another hospital where his heart stopped again. Despite these setbacks, Dill is alive and recovering, and doctors have a plan of attack for his medical issues.
“I hope people are more aware of how valuable that CPR is,” Rafuse said.
Rafuse also said that as soon as his uncle is back on his feet, he has plans to go directly to Tim Hortons. He was a regular there, but his normal order isn’t what he’s after.
“The first thing he wants to do is visit Tim Hortons, not for the coffee,” Rafuse said. “He wants to meet the girl that basically saved his life. This young girl is somebody’s hero.”
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