By Ethan Forman
The Salem News
MIDDLETON, Mass. — With just two days to go until his retirement, Fire Chief Frank Twiss suffered a heart attack at the fire station on Lake Street on the morning of Aug. 29, but his life was saved by some of the very firefighters with whom he has worked during his 37-year career on the department.
“Looking back, I couldn’t have been in a better place to have this event occur,” said Twiss, during a recent interview at his home in town. “You know, I was surrounded by not only my colleagues but great friends and people I have known for many, many years who immediately stepped in and started care.”
Twiss, now on the mend, said Middleton selectmen plan to recognize the firefighters who saved his life during a 7:10 p.m. ceremony during a meeting at the Fuller Meadow School on Tuesday, Sept. 13.
Twiss, who has been chief for nine years, was stricken that morning two weeks ago after he took part in a physical abilities test, then participated in a phone training session with other members of his department, which also includes nine full-time firefighters and 20 part-timers.
Firefighters, stunned by their chief taking ill, immediately realized what was happening and used a defibrillator on him and performed CPR to restore a normal heart rhythm, Town Administrator Andrew Sheehan related in a previous statement.
A Middleton ambulance transported Twiss to Beverly Hospital where doctors inserted three stents to re-establish normal blood flow to his heart.
Due to his quick improvement, Twiss was discharged from the hospital the night of Sept. 1, his last official day as the town’s fire chief. Firefighters met him in the hospital’s lobby and a fire truck took him home, where he was greeted by more firefighters.
“It was somewhat of an emotional period, as you can imagine,” Twiss said.
‘Living proof’
Twiss took ill about a half-hour after participating in the annual physical abilities test. The test involved four different age-based exercises, including a timed 11/2-mile run, push-ups, sit-ups and a flex test, which Twiss passed. He had been preparing for the test for several weeks.
“You know, lead by example, right,” Twiss said, explaining why he took the test so close to his retirement. “You know it’s a great morale booster, it’s great for camaraderie, and we cheer each other on.”
Approximately 30 minutes later, Twiss was sitting in on a phone training session at the station.
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“I realized I wasn’t feeling well,” he said, “and I just thought it would pass because it was no different than many, many of the days I had been out running and doing this physical activity.”
Some of the firefighters who jumped to the chief’s aid were paramedics who run the town’s Advanced Life Support ambulance.
“I am extremely proud the department has come so far in providing paramedic-level service to the people of Middleton,” Twiss said. “I am extremely proud of that. I’m living proof that all that training that we have the firefighters go through ... pays off pretty much on a daily basis because that ambulance is very busy.”
Veteran firefighter and the town’s new chief, Thomas Martinuk, 50, who replaced Twiss on Sept. 1, has been on the department for 30 years and has worked closely with Twiss.
Martinuk said it’s one thing to go to the home of someone you know in town on an ambulance run, “but when it happens right in front of you, and it’s a friend and a colleague and it’s your boss, you are kind of stunned at first, but everything fell into place and everyone did what they were supposed to do, and the training kicked in.”
After the initial shock, and the firefighters did their job, what happened to Twiss hit them emotionally, Martinuk said. A critical incidence stress team was called in to speak with the crew.
“It’s a collaborative effort with us, and the hospital, and the townspeople support us, and the selectmen, and the town administrator,” Martinuk explained.
Twiss said this experience should be a call to others, not just firefighters, to be trained in CPR.
“That is what I have said from the beginning, to stress the importance of CPR in the community,” he said, adding that he’s proud of the department’s EMS coordinator, Doug LeColst, who has been a CPR trainer in the community for years. LeColst is one of those being recognized by selectmen Tuesday.
“He’s trained countless folks in CPR, and that has always been something I felt strongly about prior to this incident, and I’ve supported Doug and whatever he’s needed to do to get out into the community, and I know they will continue to get residents trained in CPR,” Twiss said.
At Tuesday’s meeting, selectmen plan to recognize LeColst and firefighters Tyler Dechene, Daniel Kessel, H. Peter Beauparlant, David Kelsen, Eric Moore, Patrick Carritte and Reid Warnock.
Twiss plans to continue teaching as an adjunct in the fire science programs at North Shore Community College and Salem State University.
Copyright 2016 The Salem News