20 Volunteers Perform CPR On Man In Grocery Store For 96 Minutes Until Paramedics Arrived

February 18, 2018

When a man had a heart attack in a grocery story in a remote town in Minnesota, 20 people lined up and performed CPR on him for over an hour and a half until paramedics arrived - and he survived.

Credit: ABC News

The town of Goodhue, Minn., has a population of less than 1,000. The town does not even have a traffic light.

Howard Snitzer, 54, was heading to buy groceries at Don's Foods, when he crumpled to the sidewalk, suffering a massive heart attack.

The grocery clerk called 911, and the only customer in the store, an off-duty corrections officer, rushed to Snitzer's side and began performing CPR. Across the street, the owner of a body shop heard the commotion and hurried over.

As news spread, the numbers grew. The team of first responders in Goodhue is made up entirely of volunteers. In total, about 20 pairs of hands worked to the point of exhaustion to save Snitzer's life in a CPR marathon that lasted for 96 minutes until paramedics arrived.

"We just lined up and when one guy had enough, the next guy jumped in," Roy Lodermeier said. "That's how it went."

When the paramedics finally arrived via helicopter, they witnessed an astonishing scene. Mary Svoboda, a Mayo Clinic flight nurse who flew in on the emergency helicopter, said "it was unbelievable. There were probably 20 in line, waiting their turn to do CPR. They just kept cycling through."

After 10 days, Snitzer was released from the hospital -- miraculously healthy, and incredibly grateful.

"I feel like I have a responsibility to them to live the best life possible and honor the effort they made," Snitzer said.

Watch the news report below.