As we run through our busy days, rushing off to work, off to class, swallowing a quick bite, or checking in with your honey, we rarely stop to think about the value of 20 minutes.
For a 68-year-old Australian woman, 20 minutes was the difference between life and death.
After seeing a car veer off the road in a rain storm, Tim Doherty, 20 years-old, rushed over to offer help. He found a woman slumped at the wheel, with no pulse. He threw her over his shoulder and ran for cover.
Under a bridge, he immediately began CPR. Having taken a CPR course before, Tim knew it was better to do something, rather than nothing.
Though cars slowed as they passed, nobody stopped to help. At one point, Tim ran to his car and phoned emergency.
“I worked on her for about 20 minutes and about two minutes before the ambos arrived she started breathing. She latched onto my arm which gave me a real shock. I was absolutely buggered and soaked. The whole thing kind of scared me, but I knew no-one else was going to stop in the rain so I had to do something.”
Tim’s mother nominated him for a Pride of Australia medal for his heroic efforts. The woman survived.
