“You never think you’re going to be the one to use it,” Carl said, reflecting on the day he unexpectedly needed air medical transport. It was supposed to be a relaxing fishing trip, something he looked forward to every year. Carl, a retired electrician, loved spending time outdoors, especially on his annual fishing trip to Sekiu, WA, with his close friends. But what started as a perfect day on the water quickly turned into a life-threatening medical emergency.

After a long day of fishing, Carl sat down at dinner feeling unusually tired and dizzy. “I thought I was just worn out from the day,” he recalled, his mind foggy as he tried to make sense of what he was feeling. As he stood up to leave, he collapsed. His friend quickly dialed 911, and within minutes, Clallam County Fire District 5 had arrived. Carl’s heart rate and blood pressure had plummeted. EMTs knew they had to act fast and activated Life Flight Network.

“They told me we were heading to Sekiu Airport to meet Life Flight Network, and that’s when it got real,” Carl remembered. “I closed my eyes and exhaled, but I wasn’t scared—I felt like I wasn’t alone. The flight crew was with me, and we were in it together.”

As Carl was loaded into the helicopter, he began to feel relief. “I could breathe better, and I didn’t feel like I was in trouble anymore. The med crew gave me something, and it worked right away. It was instant care,” he said, recalling how the IV fluids and medication they administered stabilized his dangerously low heart rate.

Carl had recently started a new heart medication, and the dosage had been increased. Unbeknownst to him, it was causing his heart rate and blood pressure to drop to dangerously low levels. Fortunately, once he arrived at St. Michael Medical Center in Silverdale, WA, he was taken off the medication and started on a new one. “That was all it was, thank God,” Carl said. “Once they changed my meds, I started feeling better right away, and now I feel better than I did before.”

Carl spent a week in the ICU, recovering under close observation. While his body healed, he reflected on how quickly things could have taken a different turn. “This could have happened out at sea, and I might not be here to tell my story,” he said, shaking his head. “It’s humbling.”

His recovery wasn’t quick—it took about six months to regain his full strength—but Carl was determined to return to his beloved fishing trips. “I forced myself to go back,” he laughed, now fully back to his normal self. He credits Life Flight Network for being there when it mattered most. “It meant everything. I felt safe, I was in the best place, and the crew treated me like family.”

Carl reunited with his flight nurse, Judy, who shared his relief in seeing him healthy again. “It’s stories like Carl’s that remind us why we do what we do,” she said. “Time made a life-saving difference that day.”

As for Carl, he will never forget the day Life Flight Network saved his life.