Cardiac Victim Jack Ludwig Drives to Closed Station

A heart attack victim drives himself to a fire station only to find it was closed. The man with the medical emergency is a veteran Atlanta Police Officer.

His personal story highlights the city of Atlanta's budget woes. Experts said furloughs and closed stations could lead to delays responding to fire property damage. What was at stake for the police officer was potentially life or death.

"It was like an elephant was sitting on my chest," said Sgt. Jack Ludwig. "That's the only way I can describe it."

Ludwig has seen a lot in his 22 years, but nothing like what happened while patrolling last Sunday night -- he suffered a heart attack.

Ludwig drove himself to Fire Station No. 22 in his beat area only to find no one there. A sign on the door said the Hollywood Road station was browned out -- closed. It was another case of the city budget cuts.

"I remember saying to myself, 'You've got to be kidding," he said.

"Did that ratchet up the fear in you when you thought you had instant help and it wasn't there?" asked FOX 5 reporter Morse Diggs.

"Absolutely. The game plan was to drive up to a fire station and get saved," he said.

Ludwig admits he should have stopped right and called for an ambulance. Instead, he drove to the next closest station on Joe Boone and was relieved to see firemen were on duty.

"I was banging on a trash can trying to get someone's attention," said Ludwig. "One of the firemen, he came out and I told him 'I think I'm having a heart attack.' He was absolutely wonderful."

They checked his vitals and gave him nitroglycerin.

"It was one after," said Ludwig.

It is a fact that the Atlanta Fire Department handles far more medical calls than fires. In another community – in Buckhead for example -- local residents often see a brown-out sign on the window and they're not happy about it. There is a retirement community less than a mile away and the seniors love to come by and get help.

"We have a lot of senior people that need and depend on that fire station," said a community employee. "When they call, they need this fire station to come quickly."

Atlanta's Fire Chief Kelvin Cochran said that even with a proposed $3-million tax hike on the table at City Hall, it's not enough new money to resolve the brownout problem. Cochran said he's still $3 million short.