Seattle detective stresses importance of CPR training after saving a woman's life while off-duty

SEATTLE - Some are saying it's a miracle she was there when it happened. A Seattle police officer, who was off the clock at a birthday party, rescued a woman this weekend after she stopped breathing.

That officer is sharing her story, in hopes more people will get CPR-certified.



"It seemed like I was doing it for hours and hours," said Detective Cookie Bouldin with the Seattle Police Department.

You could say the detective was at the right place at the right time.

"This was my very first time performing CPR on a human," Det. Cookie said.

Right away, she told Q13 her instincts kicked in..

"I checked to see if she had a pulse and I could not get a pulse," said Det. Cookie.

And in the end, she said she believe her training helped save a woman's life.

"It just happened that this woman was enjoying herself at a social birthday party event where everyone was having a good time, and then all of a sudden she just lost consciousness," said Det. Bouldin.

Last Friday the detective said she was at a party in Tukwila a woman in her 50's was sitting in front of her and stopped breathing.

So she quickly performed CPR on her, but she told us it wasn't easy.

"My arms were getting extremely tired," said Det. Cookie. "They were feeling like spaghetti, but I had to keep going. Even though I wasn't seeing any improvement in the lady, I knew I had to keep going."

As of right now, the woman is recovering in the hospital.

That's why the detective is now pushing for more people to get CPR-certified.

"It's just a matter of knowing how to put your hands, where to put your hands because you have to push down quite hard."

According to the American heart association, almost 90 percent of people who have a cardiac arrest out of the hospital, die.

Health experts said CPR, especially if performed in the first few minutes, can double or triple someone's chance of survival.

"Anybody could do it, whether you're young or you're old. You could still do this."

She also said it's never too late to sign up for classes, and hopes more people will get involved.

"You just need to the proper training, and the proper training is not hard to get."