February 18, 2020 - Mayor's Column
Everyone has heard of the “Miracle on 34th Street” and now Bronxville has its own version, “The Miracle on Dusenberry Road”. The following is a wonderful narrative of a day in the life of so many people who care for and protect us on a daily basis, making our Village the truly incredible home we are blessed to enjoy. We celebrated everyone involved at the February Board of Trustees meeting and there was nary a dry eye in the room.
On January 10th at 8:28am, Village mainstay, Steve Pagliaroli, a painter and contractor who has helped many of us out for the past 35 years, was just leaving a project on Dusenberry to head up to work in Rye Brook. Steve remembers telling his workers he’d meet them there and from that moment on his memory fades.
Village resident, Andrew Kolb, had just finished walking his dog at Alfredo field and stopped at the STOP sign on Dusenberry. Seeing an SUV with the door wide open, and seeming unusual, he chose to stop and see if everything was okay. He soon found Mr. Pagliaroli on the ground.
He immediately called 911 and then yelled back to friend and fellow dog walker, Kathleen Hardart, a Village resident and pediatric cardiac surgeon who ran to the scene and immediately began CPR. The Village happened to have three police cars on duty that day, again another unusual and fortuitous event in the chain of the day, and all three cars came as they were not tied up in other parts of the Village. Sargent Bart Sandarciero, Officer Cheryl Jarosz and Officer Lauralee Ulrich arrived and took over CPR, employed a defibrillator, equipment in every one of our police cars, and administered oxygen from an Ambu resuscitator they also carry as standard equipment.
The Eastchester Fire Department and EVAC soon arrived on the scene and continued advanced life support measures. On the scene were Captain Richard Dempsey and Firefighters Shawn Stewart, Dominick DiRienzo, Frank Greenbaum and Michael O’Leary. Again, an anomaly and stroke of good fortune, EVAC had been experimenting with having two paramedics on duty who both came to the scene, James Discuillo and Gustavo Torres, as they weren’t on other calls at that moment.
All of this occurred within a 5 to 10 minute time span upon finding a gentleman with no pulse.
Mr. Pagliaroli was transported to NYP-Lawrence Hospital where staff was waiting with appropriate equipment as our EVAC ambulances have real time communication with the hospital during transport.
The Director of the NYP-Lawrence Hospital Emergency Services, Dr. Andrew Amaranto, actually worked on Mr. Pagliaroli himself. He was immediately sent to the new cardiac cauterization lab upstairs in the hospital where stents were immediately inserted.
Two days later, Steve walked out of the hospital with his son and wife Janet by his side.
As someone so aptly put at our celebration of Steve and his family and all our first responders and medical staff, had any link in the chain faltered, the outcome would have been far different as the percentage of survival in an unwitnessed case like Steve’s is under 5 percent – had Andrew not bothered to investigate an unusual situation; had Dr. Hardart shortened her dog walk; had multiple Bronxville police cars not been in the vicinity; had EVAC not tested having two paramedics on duty and finally had NYP-Lawrence not had a world class cath lab on the premises just minutes away.
As Chief Satriale said to his officers, and which truly applies to so many, “This may be a once in a career event as you truly saved a life.”
The “Miracle on Dusenberry” gave us all who were privy new perspective – an understanding of the fragility of life, the importance of being a good friend and neighbor and an appreciation for the truly special men and women who serve us on a daily basis. The Trustees and I realized all are so deserving of our thanks so much more often than we seem to acknowledge. On behalf of a very grateful Village, I say thank you to all those who care for us on a daily basis making Bronxville such a special home. We are truly blessed.