As part of National CPR week and Los Angeles County’s Sidewalk CPR Day, Manhattan Beach firefighters and the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) took to the streets Tuesday in an effort to equip the community with a lifesaving technique called hands-only CPR.
Hands-only CPR, a two-step resuscitation for cardiac arrests, has proven to be as effective as conventional mouth-to-mouth CPR and can double or triple a victim’s chance of survival, MBFD Chief Robert Espinosa said.
“Surviving cardiac arrest greatly depends on immediate CPR from a family member or bystander,” Espinosa said.
He explained that while other agencies typically hold demonstrations at their stations, he decided to make the event interactive and accessible by bringing them out to the public.
The demonstrations took place at the Manhattan Beach Pier, Metlox Plaza, Bristol Farms and the Manhattan Village Mall.
