DEPEW, NY — Depew High School students are learning how to save lives with help from the Twin District Fire Company on Monday.
Students used CPR Annies and a training AED Monday to understand what to do if someone goes into cardiac arrest.
"The more people in the community with this skill, the better off we will all be. Whether it's their family, grandparents, or whoever might need this. Certain situations they may be in, they know they could help somebody," said Erik Petersen, a Physical Education teacher at Depew High School.
The high school has offered this training for a long time. Still, Superintendent Doctor Hank Stopinski says Damar Hamlin's on-field cardiac arrest earlier this year raised awareness for this life-saving lesson.
"The young people that are being involved right now, there is a better sense of purpose. They can understand it is real and it can happen to anybody. If they have these skills, they are in a much better place," said Dr. Stopinski.
According to the American Heart Association after Hamlin's on-field incident, the organization saw a 145-percent increase with visitors visiting the "What is CPR?" site.
After seeing Hamlin collapse, students want to be able to prepared for the worst.
"Anything can happen. Anyone can get a cardiac arrest. You need to know it, it's like a basic thing you need to know, and you should probably learn it," said Allyson Scotarski, a sophomore at Depew High School.
