Nurse, Former Marine Save Man Having Heart Attack At Mission Viejo Gym

MISSION VIEJO (CBSLA.com) — A 51-year-old man was recuperating Tuesday in a Mission Viejo hospital after a nurse and a former Marine revived him after  a heart attack at a fitness center.

The man was running on a treadmill when his heart failed about 7:45 p.m. Monday at the Sierra Recreation and Fitness Center in Mission Viejo, Orange County Fire Authority Capt. Steve Concialdi said.

The man "shot off the back" of the exercise machine and Norah Collins LeTona, who works as a nurse at Children's Hospital of Orange County, grabbed an automated external defibrillator off a wall and put the machine's pads on the victim while Jose Campos, a former Navy medic and employee at the fitness center, told someone to call 911, Concialdi said.

Campos checked the man's pulse and started CPR, then he and Letona applied the AED to jolt his heart back into action.

"Once it was evident we were going to have to start CPR, I did say to myself, 'Please, live,' and it brought me back to being deployed and being in situations where it is life and death," Campos said.

Campos continued efforts to revive the man and after about 30 seconds, the victim started drawing breath again.

"The quick actions of Norah and Jose and the AED being close by definitely saved this man's life," Concialdi said. "This is an excellent example of bystanders knowing CPR, having an AED available and stepping in to help save a person in grave need."

(©2015 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Wire services contributed to this report.)