Two HTC Members at Rivers Casino Save a Life with CPR

March 8, 2023 10:45 AM

On Friday, January 13th, 2023, Rivers Casino security officer and HTC member Genetta Darling was standing at her post when she heard a commotion in the pok- er room. She turned around and saw a patron fall backwards off his stool; “I ran over, and immediately recognized the signs of cardiac arrest.” The 84-year-old patron was blue all over.

Darling checked his pulse: nothing. She grabbed the defibrillator off the wall. “I started delegating to everyone–get his shirt off, call 911.” Darling works nights as an EMT with Mohawk Ambulance, where she recently injured her wrist on the job. She’s not supposed to do chest compressions on her injury, “But I was going to just take my brace off and do it. Can’t have anyone die,” Darling said. “But then Chuck came in.” Chuck Olson is the newest Security/EMT hire at Rivers. In fact, that Friday was his first day on the job. Together, he and Darling started CPR at 11:49, just three minutes after the patron collapsed, and successfully restarted his heart. Within a few minutes, he was awake and talking. “If I was not right where I was at that moment, that man would be dead,” said Darling.

Originally from Southern California, Genetta Darling has been living in Schenectady for five years. She started at Rivers Casino and joined our Union in September 2021. “I never have a bad day here, I’m always laughing.”

Darling’s journey to becoming an EMT is a sad one. She first thought of joining the profession after having to perform chest compressions on two of her loved ones. “After that, I thought, why not save lives?” She’s been an EMT since 2019.

January 13th was Darling’s first time being the first to arrive on scene. “I was nervous, but when I ran in there, every- thing just clicked. I hope it doesn’t happen again, but if it does, I’m ready.”