Secondary school student resuscitates unconscious man at Pasir Ris, gets award from SCDF

A man suffered a cardiac arrest inside a residential unit along Pasir Ris Street 21 at around 11:30am on Sep. 7.

When secondary school student Mark Eli Fernando was notified of the incident, he dashed towards the scene without hesitation.

Noticing the man was in an unconscious state, Mark rushed to the lift lobby to retrieve an Automated External Defibrillator (AED).

He then began performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) on the man and administered the AED.

As a result, the man regained consciousness before the arrival of Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF)'s Emergency Medical Services.

For his heroic deeds, Mark was awarded the SCDF Community Lifesaver Award on Oct. 24, said SCDF in a Nov. 22 Facebook post.

Mark drew upon first aid training

According to SCDF, Mark was alerted to the incident via the SCDF myResponder app.

When he arrived at the scene, he drew upon his first aid training, which was part of his involvement with the Pathlight Hummingbird Scouts from Pathlight School.

The school helps students on the autism spectrum to undertake the national curriculum while equipping them with life-readiness skills, according to its website.

"Thanks to Mark's timely intervention and lifesaving actions, the man survived and is alive today," wrote SCDF.

Anyone can play a part in saving lives

Drawing on Mark's example, SCDF said "anyone can play a part" when it comes to saving lives.

Members of the public are encouraged to download the SCDF myResponder app and register as a community first responder via the app.

They can also learn essential lifesaving skills through SCDF's Responders Plus Programme.

More information about the programme can be found here.