Florida deputy breaks car window to administer Narcan, CPR to driver

A Flagler County sheriff's deputy said a man who sped past his patrol car on U.S. Highway 1 before crashing into another vehicle showed signs of a possible overdose.

Master Deputy Brad Stogdon said he noticed the vehicle was moving recklessly, in and out of traffic. When he was able to approach the car, he said he noticed things were not right.  The deputy stopped to provide medical aid to the man who was unresponsive behind the wheel.  

"I noticed he was slouched down in his seat and shaking pretty rapidly and that his eyes were rolling in the back of his head which is usually an indication of an overdose or something along those lines," he said.

The deputy had to break a window to get to the man. The first thing that was running through his mind was making sure he got help. "Main thing, I wanted him to breathe on his own. When I felt for a pulse, he didn't have a pulse, he wasn't breathing. He started to turn blue pretty rapidly."

He quickly administered Narcan and performed CPR.  Soon, a St. Johns County sheriff's deputy arrived and assisted before St. Johns County Fire/EMS arrived to administer a second dose of Narcan.  The man regained consciousness and was taken to a local hospital for further treatment and is expected to make a full recovery. 

Deputy Stogdon said he's never been in a scenario like this before but had this piece of advice for drivers. "If you see somebody driving recklessly, or anything like that try to contact law enforcement as soon as possible so we can take some kind of enforcement action."

Stogdon said he was glad he was in the right place at the right time."Whether we're on the clock or off the clock, we're always looking to help."

The Florida Highway Patrol is investigating the cause of the crash.