When Josh Gurley went to his local Texas Roadhouse with his wife for dinner he didn’t expect to save a life.
“My wife and I were in the middle of our dinner, and we heard a commotion in the bar area and thought someone was vomiting,” said Josh Gurley, Railcar Mechanic at Cook Coal Terminal in Metropolis, Ill. “I realized a man was choking and someone was trying to perform the Heimlich Maneuver.”
Supervisor Melvin Jeffords III presented the AEP Hero Award to Railcar Mechanic Josh Gurley.
Gurley, who has been with the company for 18 years, annually receives first aid, CPR and AED training at the Cook Coal Terminal. He noticed the fellow patron performing the Heimlich Maneuver had his arms in the wrong position.
“I quickly ran over and informed the man he had his arms up to high around the victim’s chest,” Gurley said. “I advised him to lower his arms to the correct position and the next time he squeezed, the object dislodged.”
It was just in time as the choking victim was struggling to breathe and was blue in the face.
“We never know when we will be presented an opportunity to apply our training,” said Jamie Peyton, Cook Coal Terminal Plant Manager. “Josh’s quick recognition of the circumstances and his immediate action truly impacted saving this man’s life.”
Earlier this month, Josh was awarded the AEP Hero Award for his efforts. The award is given to employees that took courageous steps to save the life of another person, but whose own well-being in doing so was not under extraordinary risk.
“Our employees do excellent work each day. We talk about watching out for each other while on the job, but our employees also watch out for those in our community,” said Steve Baker, I&M president, and chief operating officer. “I applaud Josh for helping save this man’s life with the training he learned here at AEP and I&M.”