Wife Credits Maine Gym Owner After Cardiac Arrest

An 89-year-old man who suffered cardiac arrest while working out at a local gym survived for another week thanks to the quick actions of the gym’s owner, according to his wife.

According to WMTW News 8, Bill Drake passed away at Maine Medical Center in Portland one week after going into cardiac arrest at United Fitness in Winthrop, but his wife, Florence Drake, says the moments immediately after his collapse made all the difference.

Drake was riding a stationary bike before his senior fitness class on Thursday, Jan. 29, when his heart suddenly stopped. A young woman exercising nearby rushed to get help, alerting gym owner Ryan Chamberland, who immediately called 911 and began CPR, the news station reported.

“I was checking his airway, checking for a pulse, trying to get him to respond,” Chamberland said. “I did a couple of sternum rubs on him.”

WMTW went on to say that Chamberland regularly participates in CPR and first responder training alongside his leadership team and says the incident reinforced just how vital that training can be.

Florence Drake, a former EMT, credits Chamberland’s actions with giving her husband more time. Doctors later told the family that scans showed the cardiac arrest caused no additional damage to what was otherwise a healthy heart, WMTW said.

“He was described as an 89-year-old man who presented more like a 70-year-old,” she said.

Florence hopes her husband’s story encourages others to seek CPR and emergency response training. One of Bill’s sons, a specialized charge nurse in California, plans to donate an AED to the gym as a thank-you for Chamberland’s efforts.

Chamberland says he was simply doing what needed to be done and hopes the story inspires others to step up when it matters most.

“Be kind,” he said. “Help someone. If there’s an opportunity to help, help them.”