GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — A passenger is alive thanks to rescue efforts by Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers at Gerald R. Ford International Airport (GRR).
Officer Mark Smith noticed a passenger was visibly winded at the checkpoint early morning on Jan. 25, according to the TSA. The officer gave the passenger a chair and requested help from Officer Tim Gavin, who was close by during the incident.
Luckily, the TSA says Gavin used to be a firefighter with an EMT license.
“I then approached the passenger and quickly assessed his vitals when he immediately went from convulsions to unresponsive and no pulse,” recalls Gavin. “The passenger was a big guy, but with Mark’s assistance, we were able to move him from the chair to the floor. As I began to perform CPR, officers from the GRR Police Department arrived with an automated external defibrillator, and together we were able to immediately revive the passenger.”
We’re told Gavin worked for the Wright-Tallmadge Township Fire Department for 14 years before starting his career as a TSA officer in late 2017.
“This isn’t the first life Tim has saved a life at the airport,” says Michigan Federal Security Director Reggie Stephens. “He assisted GRR first responders in reviving a passenger, who had a drug overdose, at the checkpoint over a year ago. I was really impressed with how the rest of our officers maintained their focus on checkpoint security while Tim and Mark assisted the passenger. Words aren’t adequate to describe what this team means to me, the agency, and the airport.”
The TSA says the passenger came back to GRR days later to offer his gratitude.
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