NBU NEWS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 4, 2005
Contact: Gretchen Reuwer, NBU Communications Manager, (830) 629-8486

NBU employee recognized for life saving efforts

NEW BRAUNFELS—New Braunfels Utilities has a program in place through the American Red Cross to teach its employees Standard First Aid. The purpose of the course is to give individuals in the workplace the knowledge and skills necessary to recognize and provide basic care for injuries and sudden illnesses until advanced medical personnel arrive and take over.

That training became critical recently when Kenneth Ryals of the NBU Water Distribution & Collection Division arrived home to find a relative collapsed and was unresponsive. He quickly called 911 and then initiated CPR until EMS crews arrived on the scene. Emergency personnel agreed that without Ryals being able to put his training into practice, his relative might not have survived.

Recently, San Antonio Mayor Ed Garza and City Council Members helped honor Ryals and 10 other individuals and groups with the Annual Crossroads Award. The Crossroads Awards are sponsored by the American Red Cross and the American Heart Association.

Presently NBU has about 75% of its employees certified in Standard First Aid. That means 144 out of 193 are certified and have received Adult CPR certificates that are renewed every year, and First Aid Basics certificates that are renewed every three years. Ryals’ experience underscores the reason why so much emphasis is placed on having this training available to all NBU employees.