First responders save man who suffered electrical shock

On Saturday, Aug. 1, the Long Beach Fire Department responded to a call at 12:50 p.m. reporting that a 27-year-old East Atlantic Beach man had suffered an electrical shock.

First arriving units found the unconscious man in cardiac arrest, and CPR was administered along with advanced life support treatment. Two neighbors, a nurse and an off-duty Old Westbury Police Department police officer, aided the victim and performed CPR while 911 was contacted, according to Nassau County police.

The victim’s life was saved by the quick-thinking of first responders, Long Beach Fire Chief RJ Tuccillo said. The victim, whose name was not released, was transported to South Nassau Communities Hospital and is expected to recover.

According to Tuccillo, the victim was attempting to hang an American flag across Buffalo Avenue to celebrate a residential block party. The man used a weighted plastic bottle attached to a rope to throw the rope over electrical wires. The rope eventually tangled in an overhead 7,620-volt high-tension wire and, in an attempt to get the rope off the line, the victim stood on a second story porch and contacted the wire with a metal pole, police said.

Long Beach paramedics Bryan Johnson and Francis Rivera arrived on the scene shortly after and treated the victim while he was transported by ambulance to the hospital. Tuccillo said that the paramedics applied an AED to get the victim breathing and took all required lifesaving measures.

Tuccillo added that the victim is still in the Intensive Care Unit, but he’s expected to survive. The incident occurred during a busy Saturday for Long Beach firefighters and other first responders, as rough water conditions resulted in several lifeguard saves throughout the day, and a massive rescue operation for a missing swimmer off National Boulevard beach later that evening.