ARAmark employee Larry Langford was driving a van on the Darlington School campus around 8:10 a.m. Tuesday to work on the new school infirmary when he had a seizure and veered into Silver Lake.

Fellow co-workers Kenneth McBee, Rodney Hall and Ted Thompson, who were in vehicles in front and behind Langford, jumped from their vehicles and pulled him out as the van began to sink. Once they had extracted Langford from the vehicle, they realized he was not breathing and did not have a pulse.

The Headmaster’s Office called 911, while McBee and Headmaster David Rhodes administered CPR to Langford. According to Rhodes, they were able to get a heartbeat within one minute. Paradmedics soon arrived and administered oxygen, after which Langford became coherant. He was then transported to Floyd Medical Center. Initial reports from the school are that Langford is doing well.

“I am proud of the way the Darlington community came together and responded in this situation,” said Rhodes. “The quick thinking and action that Kenneth, Rodney and Ted illustrated not only saved Larry’s life, but also reduced any chance of long-term effects. These three men deserve our praise and adoration.”

See Wednesday's Rome News-Tribune for complete story.