Rockland man meets the people who saved his life at gym

By Sue Scheible
Patriot Ledger
WEYMOUTH -- He fell to the floor, his eyes rolled back and he stopped breathing. The color drained from his face and he had no pulse. Greg Pike's 36-year-old heart was giving out.

Pike doesn't remember any of it, but thanks to four people who came to his rescue at Planet Fitness in Weymouth on Aug. 30, he is around to talk about it today.

The Rockland resident recently got a chance to thank his personal lifesaving team.

"I really appreciate what you did for me -- it changed my life -- you saved my life," Pike said as he shook hands and dispensed hugs.

"I'm very emotional. Don't get me started; I'm going to cry -- I'm Italian," said Linda Natale, 49, of Hanover, a South Shore Hospital nurse who performed CPR on Pike.

"It's great to see you standing upright," added Mark Durling, 35, of Carver, a Fallon Ambulance paramedic who, along with paramedic Kevin Robischeau, responded to the 911 call. All four said they were amazed at how good Pike looks just weeks after his heart stopped beating.

Natale was working out nearby when Pike collapsed while exercising on an elliptical machine at 7:45 a.m. Aug. 30. She performed CPR with Paul Basile, 52, of Weymouth, a retired Braintree firefighter who works at the club.

His doctor has told Pike to wait until this coming Monday to start working out again. Pike now has a tiny defibrillator in his chest and cannot drive for six months, but he is back at work as a computer support specialist at Interactive Digital Systems in Norwell. His wife, Holly, drove him to the club to meet and thank the people who brought him back to life.

In their reunion, the four told Pike the details of what happened that day. Pike said he has been working out at the club for two years and lost 350 pounds more than a year ago after gastric bypass surgery. He was exercising on the elliptical machine when he collapsed. He tried to get up, collapsed again, had no pulse and was in cardiac arrest.

Basile, who opens the club each morning at 5, was at the front desk when he "heard a member scream he (Greg) wasn't breathing."

Natale said that when she ran over to Pike, his eyes had rolled back and he had no pulse. She started chest compressions.

"I was nervous -- trust me," she told Pike. "I never do this outside of my business (the hospital), and we don't do it that often inside. You just have to stay calm."

Basile ran to get the club's defibrillator. The device indicated that Pike did not have a heart rhythm, so Basile and Natale took turns doing chest compressions and blowing air into Pike's mouth. Meanwhile, Donna Pompeo of Weymouth, another club member, dialed 911.

Durling, one of the paramedics, said Natale and Basile's efforts worked. When the paramedics arrived, Pike's heart had refilled with blood and had regained a rhythm, although it was abnormal. Robischeau described how he shocked Pike's heart once and Pike quickly regained color and started breathing on his own.

"Sometimes you shock a heart and there isn't any blood in it to flow. For a cardiac arrest, it went as smoothly as could be," Robisheau said. "This is actually very unusual -- to have someone standing in front of us afterwards. It was a great result and a great feeling."

Durling said that during five years as a paramedic, "this is my first cardiac arrest with a successful outcome."

Pike was rushed to South Shore Hospital, where he was treated for a heart condition he hadn't even known he had.

"The cardiologist said that I had an unknown electrical problem, and it could have happened anywhere -- sitting at my desk at work, in the car -- and it was not because of the exercise," Pike said.

Pike said he was lucky to have had his heart attack where and when he did. A new state law requiring health clubs to have a defibrillator on hand at all times was enacted following the death of a 22-year-old woman who collapsed at Planet Fitness in Plymouth last year.

"It was unique that this happened at another Planet Fitness, considering the thousands of gyms in the state," he said. "Unfortunately, someone died before. Apparently their death gave me life."

Sue Scheible may be reached at sscheible@ledger.com.

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[patriotledger]

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[Gtugcu]

im surprised those wangs at planet fitness didnt just set off the lunk alarm and thro him out! lol

[x3huesos]

its cool people helped....prob the most effort ever giving at a planetfitness

[foot2wood]

This motherfucker is one lucky son of a bitch, Good thing the people at that fucking gym gave a shit and helped his ass. Most assholes in gyms dont give a fuck, but this was a good ending to a fucked up situation. Thank God his ass didnt expire and he can get right back in the gym and do the fucking thing on them goddamned machines that tried to kill his fucking ass.

[jvegac07]

it,s cool

[vafanculooo]

WATCH OLD PEOPLE GYM

[finooch]

MAYBE it happened cause of the "NO BREATHING" rule when ur working out. a grunt alarm? THAT just makes me shake my head everytime someone tells me they go there.

[chris131182131182]

good to see there is still good people out there

[WCD73]

I'M GLAD HE SURVIVED!!!

[WCD73]

The People that stopped to help are true heroes!!!