Fire Marshal shares news of his heart attack during American Heart Month

STATELINE, Nev. - This month is the 57th consecutive February being recognized as American Heart Month, and the 2021 version comes with an impactful statement from someone normally tasked with saving lives.

On Sunday, February 7, Tahoe Douglas Fire Marshal Eric Guevin found himself on the other end of a medical rescue.

"I thought I was having acid reflux or real bad heartburn at first and took a handful of Tums on my way to bed," said the 51-year-old Guevin.

By the time he was at the top of the stairs he said the pain in the middle of his chest was severe, giving it a 9 out of 10 on the pain scale. He doubled over and dropped to his knees.

"As a Firefighter Paramedic I knew the symptoms but it hit me like a ton of bricks," said Eric.

His wife and sons were very concerned and called 911. Eric's Apple watch alerted him that he was in bigeminy, a cardiac arrhythmia in which there is a single ectopic beat, or irregular heartbeat, following each regular heartbeat.

"I knew it was cardiac and confirmed with my watch's EKG," said Eric. "I was helped down the stairs to the front pouch to get fresh air. Shelly [his wife] ran through the house and got baby aspirin for me to chew and gave info to the dispatchers. The cold air helped and my watch showed a sinus rhythm slightly tachycardia. Pain went down to about a five."

The Reno Fire Department arrived and their presence was calming to the whole family. The REMSA ambulance arrived, did a 12-lead with ST elevation, loaded him up and transported him to Renown Medical Center Code 3 while administering nitroglycerin via an IV and with STEMI pre-alert.

Within minutes of arriving at the hospital, Guevin was on a table, was given a COVID test, an x-ray, and off to the catheterization (cath) laboratory, all while being surrounded by about 12 or more staff.

"It was a 100 percent proximal LAD cardiac artery blockage, the 'widow maker'," said Guevin. "But not today because of the quick actions by family and all, including the talented staff at Renown."

It’s strange being the patient. I got the VIP treatment on the cardiac ICU," said Guevin. He is now at home focusing on recovery and sharing his story

He is sharing his story to tell the public that heart disease is the Number 1 killer of Americans, 800,000 deaths a year and 160,000 of these men and women under the age of 65.

Eric knows he is "not cut hunk and have a little belly," but didn't think his heart was plugged by junk. "

"Coronary artery disease is real and it can happen to everyone," said Eric. "Even rescuers need rescuing and the steps to survival are so important. I have a new lease on life."

Eric's tips - learn cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and how to use an automated external defibrillator (AED). For more on American Heart Month, how to recognize a stroke and heart attack, and other information, visit https://www.heart.org/en/around-the-aha/february-is-american-heart-month.