TSA Award Winner: Paul Necuik - Heroism
News & Happenings
August 22, 2007
While riding on the Lot D bus on July 27, 2006, Paul Neciuk, a supervisory TSA-approved instructor at Los Angeles International Airport, heard Delta Airlines Representative Ruth Tatong coughing and gasping for air. Thinking she was reaching for an inhaler, Neciuk remained poised to assist if needed. The actions Neciuk took next earned him a TSA Honorary Incentive Award for Heroism last November.
"Somebody help me!" Tatong shouted, bringing Neciuk into action from the back of the bus. He remembered seeing Tatong eating a granola bar and suspected she was choking. He tapped Tatong on her back with the heel of his hand but she continued to choke. He then applied the Heimlich Maneuver with immediate results.
Tatong, quoted in a TSA Incident Report, told Neciuk, "You saved my life."
