Minneapolis chef saves woman after she collapses near his work

MINNEAPOLIS (KMSP) - A busy day in the kitchen is a good day for Josh Brown. As a chef for D’Amico Catering, he loves his job and the people he works with. Wednesday, however, his mission wasn't just making good food with friends, but saving a life.

Walking from the kitchen to the front office, he saw a woman huddled over and he thought she might be in real trouble.

“I was like ‘Can you hear me?’ and her eyes were huge and I was tapping her face,” said Brown. “I was like, ‘Please respond,’ ya know? I was like, ‘Can you blink?’ and I got no response at all.”

A woman who had called 911 was relaying directions from the dispatcher to Brown, but the chest compressions weren’t working. Then Brown heard the sound he had only heard once before - when his father took his last breath.

“When I rolled her on her side that sound had come out and it was just overwhelming and I was like, ‘Don’t die,’” said Brown.

He continued chest compressions until paramedics took over.

“[The paramedic] turned and she looked at me and she goes, ‘Were you doing chest compressions?’ And she goes ‘You probably saved her life,’” said Brown.

Fox 9 first learned of Brown's heroic efforts from his fifteen-year-old son, Carter, saying he believes his dad is a hero every day.

In Carter’s email to Fox 9 he said in part, “My dad is a hero. He called me crying out of thankfulness that he was given the opportunity to save a woman’s life. I can’t explain how much of a hero he is to me … My dad is such an amazing person that would do anything for anybody even if he didn’t know them.”

After the ordeal, Brown felt inspired to go buy $100 worth of toys for the Toys for Tots campaign. He then bought flowers for the woman who was helping him with the victim. As for the victim, he has called for her condition and she remains critical.