Farmer Receives CPR Award

Sunday, 21 December 2014 at 08:05

Woodstock farmer Jim Morton receives award from Canadian Red Cross for using CPR to save the life of Zurich farmer Nico Peeters.

WOODSTOCK - A local farmer received an award from the Canadian Red Cross for using CPR to save a Zurich farmer. Last October, Jim Morton from Woodstock travelled an hour to Zurich Township to look at a tractor for sale. Morton says when he arrived to the property he was alarmed immediately.

"When I drove into the yard, right away I knew something wasn't right because I saw a foot sticking out through the hatch of a high moisture corn silo."

Nico Peeters of Zurich had gone into the hatch to investigate why corn wasn't coming out. A build up of has from the fermentation of grain caused Peeters to fall unconscious. Fortunately for Peeters, Morton was on his way to look at the tractor that was for sale. Morton called 911 when he discovered Peeters unconscious, and pulled him from the hatch.

"Started the tractor up, reversed back let him down onto the ground and then I started chest compression and probably on the sixth chest compression this guy started to breathe again."

Morton had gotten his CPR certification from Red Cross just 18 months before the incident.

"I had done a Red Cross course about 18 months ago which was very, very valuable...I never ever thought I would walk into a situation like I did that day."

The families of both Jim Morton & Nico Peeters Peeters a father of two young girls said he would have been dead if Morton had missed the appointment to see the tractor. "I work with my dad...but he was done for the day so nobody was going to be there until the next day, Amy (his wife) probably would have missed me at supper time but that would have been way too late."

Peeters wife Amy said she is grateful to Morton for saving her husbands life, "we are very lucky, it's like a miracle happened for our family."

Nico Peeters and Jim Morton were both joined by their families for the presentation of the Canadian Red Cross Rescuer Awards. The awards honour citizens who go out of their way to save a life or prevent injury.

Morton and Peeters encourage people to get their CPR certification. You never know when you might need it to save someone's life.