Family Thanks Firefighters for Saving Man's Life

Josh Brown laid motionless inside his beer delivery truck in cardiac arrest March 26 when a few Good Samaritins did what they said anyone would do. 

They tried to save his life. 

Dawn Moser, who was expecting a delivery from Brown to Sports Bar and Grill, found Brown inside the cab of his truck and dialed 911. 

She went to a nearby gym and found owner Phil Beatty, who is trained in CRP. 

Beatty began CRP on Brown inside the truck. 

St. Petersburg Fire and Rescue firefighter/EMT Zach Johnson was also in the gym and noticed the situation and ran to help.

He pulled Brown from the truck and continued with CRP until first-responders from Fire Station 7 arrived. 

To anyone who saw Brown that day, his future looked grim. 

"All I could think about is this is a young guy," said Beatty on Thursday. "When they took you out of there, I didn’t think you were going to make it."

Neither did the medical staff at Northside Hospital, said Brown's wife, Carrie. 

Carrie Brown said Thursday that her husband was given a slim chance at full and quick recovery, but that is exactly what Josh Brown got. 

On Thursday, Josh and Carrie Brown went to Fire Station 7 to thank Beatty, Johnson and the firefighters who helped save Josh Brown's life. 

"If it wasn’t for you, he wouldn’t be here," Carrie Brown said, holding back the tears. 

"Thank you guys from the bottom of my heart," Josh Brown told the firefighters. "I can’t believe I’m standing here."

The quick response by Johnson and Beatty to provide CPR has inspired Carrie Brown to learn CRP. 

"It’s really within seconds you need to start CPR," she said. "It inspired me and a bunch of our friends and get CPR certified."

Beatty said nearly a dozen members of his gym are preparing to now take a CPR class because of the events on March 26. 

"It's been a life-changing event but it’s given me another outlook at life," Josh Brown said. "In my eyes I shouldn’t be here. Because of you, I am."

If you wish to take a CPR class from St. Petersburg Fire and Rescue, you can call 727-892-LIFE.