During the early morning shift at Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport, TSA Officer Alisa Coleman was alarmed by a commotion she heard in the terminal and saw a law enforcement officer racing to the bottom of the checkpoint.
Coleman, a former Navy corpsman and 20-year medical assistant, discovered fellow officer, Stacy Govan, had collapsed and was in need of medical assistance. Luckily, Supervisory TSA Officer Mark Rauschart was working next to Govan and caught her as she started to fall. He gently lowered her to the floor, preventing additional trauma.
As Coleman rushed to the scene, her former medical training took over. After a quick triage of the situation, Coleman discovered that Govan was not breathing and immediately started CPR. Two other officers with CPR and First-Aid training, officers Jefferey Lampear and Tiaeast Mims arrived on the scene and supported Coleman in her resuscitation efforts. Lampear administered sternal rubs and Mims applied a cold compression to help prevent additional seizures.
At the same time, two other officers, Tim Troutman and Rebecca Levitt, seeing that Govan was down, rushed to assist Coleman and Rauschart. Troutman removed stanchions from the area to provide additional space needed to assist Govan and for medical responders. Levitt notified management, cleared the checkpoint and diverted passengers.
As Govan regained consciousness, Coleman began to gently talk to her; positive words of care, love and faith. She encouraged her to stay awake and fight until the first responders arrived.
It was later found that Govan had a severe reaction to a new medication she was taking; she returned to work five days later. Coleman said, “We’re just blessed to still have her with us. Her family is blessed to have her for another holiday. She is our gift.”
“It is an honor to work with an amazing group of people that show so much compassion and support to each other and the flying public on a daily basis,” said Federal Security Director Steve Lorincz.
TSA Manager Adrienne Walker pointed out, “The dedication and coordinated teamwork shown throughout this experience is the perfect example of what this agency represents and a great example of the Administrator’s key principles – Care for Our People.”
Rauschart, Troutman, Levitt, Mims and Lampear all received Certificates of Appreciation from Lorincz. Coleman received a time-off award for her decisive lifesaving efforts.