By John Hyde
Orem citizens banded together Monday, Apr. 3, 2006, to help police save the life a man they didn?t even know.
The man, a 21-year-old Orem resident, bade farewell to the world on a public message board at a rave site, indicating that he had taken all of his medications and it was just a matter of time before he died.
?I can?t do it anymore,? part of the message read. ?I just wanted to let anyone out there know it wasn?t their fault. This was my choice and I hope you forgive me for what I?m about to do. My life just isn?t working out ? I?m sorry.?
One woman, who requested she only be identified by her first name, Julie, read the posting online and traced the IP address, finding it came from the Orem Public Library. She was concerned about the statements and called the library to alert them of the possible danger, said library director Louise Wallace. Julie also told Wallace the man had mentioned using heroin.
Despite never having handled a similar situation ? Wallace calls the experience ?a first?? the library staff acted quickly. Wallace immediately called the Orem Department of Public Safety and then asked two members of the library automation staff, Clarke Hoover and Eric Jensen, to assist the police in research.
Hoover narrowed the possibility of Internet users down to four, matching user ages within a specific time frame. Officer Terry Steele then researched those names at the Pubic Safety Building and found that one of them had a criminal history involving heroin use.
Officers tracked down the man?s apartment in central Orem, but initially could not get a response at the door. When the man?s roommate did answer the door, he told the officers the man was sleeping on the couch.
?Officers went in and found the subject slouched over on the couch,? stated Lt. Doug Edwards of the Orem Department of Public Safety. ?He was cold to the touch and they could find no pulse.?
When officers noticed the man move slightly, however, they called the paramedics. The man?s heartbeat was so shallow that it didn?t register on the paramedic?s monitor, Edwards stated,.
?They told me that another three to five minutes, he would have been gone,? Edwards said.
The man was rushed to the Utah Valley Regional Medical Center for treatment. He regained consciousness Monday afternoon.
Edwards praised everyone involved, calling it a job well done.
?Nobody was willing to take a superficial look at the situation and walk away,? he said. ?The library staff should receive a lot of credit for what they did.?
The library staff, on the other hand, praised the work of the police department.
?We were really impressed with Orem Public Safety for their response,? Wallace said. ?They were able to find this young man just in time.?
Credit is also due, of course, to the Good Samaritan who started the whole chain of events. Edwards said that Julie is ?very modest and discounts her own role.?
?We all hope this young man can be made to realize that he has been given a second chance at life and that he be helped to steer his life in a positive direction,? Edwards said.