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Red Cross Honors Five Fairfield Life-Savers

FAIRFIELD, Conn. – Five Fairfield residents were honored for their life-saving work Wednesday. Bryan Cafferelli, Paige Herman, Eric Barthel, Bob Trez and Police Officer Scott Sudora all received the American Red Cross Community Heroes Award for 2012.

“It’s great to see the Red Cross recognizing Fairfield citizens for not only helping to make our community special, but helping to keep our community special by keeping our citizens alive,” said First Selectman Michael Tetreau. Tetreau and the Board of Selectmen recognized the honors at their meeting Wednesday.

Cafferelli, Herman and Barthel earned the Water Safety award for saving the lives of four swimmers off Fairfield’s shores last summer. Herman, a Fairfield Beach Road resident, was on her waterfront porch when she saw a group of children struggling in the current near Penfield Reef. She called to Barthel, a neighbor who was swimming with his family nearby.

Barthel swam out to the children. He first helped a 12-year-old girl get oriented toward the reef so she could swim to safety. He then moved another swimmer toward her parents, who dove in to help. Barthel then swam to a 13-year-old girl who was trying to hold up a 7-year-old boy, who was unable to swim.

Barthel took the boy, allowing the girl to swim back to safety. As Barthel was beginning to tire, Cafferelli, who was in a kayak, paddled to the pair. Cafferelli took the boy into the kayak and paddled to shore, and Barthel got back to the beach safely.

Sudora and Trez were given the Law Enforcement and Good Samaritan awards, respectively, for their work to save a Fairfield man from a heart attack. The man was at Penfield Service Center when he collapsed and went into cardiac arrest. Trez, the garage’s owner, called 911 and began administering CPR.

Sudora was on patrol at the time on a different beat, but when he heard the call come in over the radio he thought he was closer than the officer on patrol. Sudora arrived at the service center and used an Automated External Defibrillator (AED) to shock the man out of arrest. The man has since made a full recovery. 

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