Fourteen-year-old Oscar was biking with his stepfather, Adam Dawe, in Cornwall, England, when he started to fall behind and complained of dizziness.
For someone who had loved mountain biking for years, having done multiple 18-mile rides with his stepfather, Oscar’s struggles were alarming.
“It wasn’t like Oscar,” Dawe said, according to EssexLive.
“We managed to get him back to the car park when he said he felt dizzy, but when we got there he just collapsed, his heart stopped beating and he stopped breathing,” Dawe said. “It was horrendous.”
Fortunately, a member of the biking group Dawe and Oscar are a part of was trained in first aid. That member performed CPR on Oscar while the others rushed to grab a defibrillator.
Oscar was taken to a children’s hospital, where he remained in an induced coma for four days.
He has since woken up and remains at the hospital with his mother, Emmie Moran, pending an open-heart surgery.
According to doctors, one of Oscar’s arteries has experienced abnormal growth, which restricts his blood flow when he engages in intense physical activities.
After the surgery, Oscar will need around six months to recover.
Gemma Dawe, Oscar’s step-aunt, launched a fundraiser on Dec. 9 to get more defibrillators in the community.
“Oscar is usually so fit and healthy; we had no idea he had an underlying heart condition,” she wrote on the fundraiser page.
“Oscar’s life was saved by the quick thinking of one individual there that night and also the team effort of everyone out riding with him.
“Luckily, they managed to perform CPR and get a defibrillator from the local village very quickly. This ultimately resulted in saving his life and had there not been a defibrillator so close, we know that Oscar would not have survived,” Gemma Dawe continued.
“We are so grateful that Oscar will eventually make a full recovery and it’s because of that machine. Because of this, we want more defibrillators in the local community.”
The fundraiser aimed to raise £1,500 for a defibrillator in Cornwall. However, thanks to the generous donations of supporters, the fundraiser more than doubled its target with £3,125 (around $3,800).
“The response to the fundraiser has been ridiculous. A defibrillator costs about £1,500 so now we’re aiming to get a second. So long as Oscar recovers fully, then something good could actually come of this,” Adam Dawe said, according to EssexLive.
“Well done Gemma and family for raising so much money for a cause that will benefit everyone,” wrote one donor on the fundraiser page.
“Amazing community teamwork — you should be so proud of each other! Get well soon Oscar,” another contributor wrote.
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.
