PORTLAND, OR (KPTV) -
It's video proof that every second counts when saving a life.
Surveillance camera footage from 2009 shows a Portland man suffering sudden cardiac death at his office, but he survived to tell the story.
Patient Wes Rogers, who's now fully recovered, is speaking out about his experience to help others learn the importance of quick response.
"I was just really lucky," said Rogers, whose wife was in the room next door when he collapsed at his desk at his printing business.
"I was talking on the phone with a client, and suddenly I just felt like, ‘Boy, I'm really tired; I just have to shut my eyes,'" recalled Rogers. "That's when I lost consciousness, dropped the phone and sat back in the chair."
His wife immediately rushed in and checked for a pulse while a co-worker called 911. Rogers says paramedics arrived in a little over four minutes and began chest compressions and lifesaving treatment.
Rogers was rushed to Adventist Medical Center and later learned his heart had stopped due to an electrical abnormality. He says he showed no symptoms, family history or signs he would be at risk.
Rogers told Fox 12 he's just fortunate his wife found him when she did.
"There's no time to delay," said Rogers. "You have to get that (911) call in. That starts the wheels in motions to help you come out with a better outcome."
"If we can't get patients into the system, we have no way to save them," said Dr. Mark Hart, a cardiologist with Adventist Medical Center's Northwest Regional Heart Center.
"What saves lives is time," said Hart. "When the heart stops, it stops pumping blood to the brain. You only have about four minutes until you start losing brain cells."
Hart said if someone doesn't have a pulse, CPR needs to be started immediately, highlighting the importance of knowing how to perform the lifesaving measure.
Rogers knows firsthand it can mean the difference between life and death.
"Unless you get that immediate response, they start CPR, they start the lifesaving steps, you're not going to make it," said Rogers.
Watch FOX 12 Report: Cardiac arrest caught on camera
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