Long Beach High School students are learning how to help in emergency situations, thanks to CPR workshops that are being conducted through the physical education program. On Feb. 25, former Assemblyman and longtime Long Beach resident Harvey Weisenberg visited and participated in one of the sessions.

Weisenberg helped to pass a New York State law that calls for all high school students to be exposed to hands-only CPR/AED training. A lifeguard for many years and Long Beach High School alumnus and multi-team athlete, he discussed the value and importance of safety in general. Weisenberg cited the second-grade swim program as one example of an initiative in which the schools and community support safety and went on to highlight CPR/AED.
    
“Today we are having the opportunity to learn and to have the confidence that you can save another person’s life if someone is in trouble,” Weisenberg said.

After viewing a short film, physical education teacher and coach Billy Muirhead guided students through the actions that should be taken in an emergency. They practiced the basic CPR steps and were shown how to use an automatic defibrillator with assistance from Weisenberg and Superintendent of Schools David Weiss.

According to the American Heart Association, approximately 38 people in the United States will have a cardiac arrest event outside of the hospital every hour. Nine out of ten will not survive. However, if lifesaving CPR is performed, a victim’s chance of surviving can double, or even triple. “It’s something everyone should know,” Weisenberg said. “Everyone is a potential life saver.”