2022 Class D Certificate - Matthew Faris (off duty)

On February 2, 2022, FF/PM Matthew Faris was with his wife and child at Sugar Bowl Ski Resort when he observed a mid-mountain ski collision. Faris ran to the injured skier and found him face down and not breathing. He quickly assessed the victim and coordinated CPR and life-saving procedures. Faris noted that the collision occurred below a jump and that the victim and his life could be in jeopardy due to skiers not able to see him. He directed viewers to run up the mountain and warn skiers to avoid the area. BLS ski patrol arrived on scene and helped Faris coordinate extrication to a medical facility with a doctor down the mountain. Faris’s training and experience led him to believe this traumatic arrest required a trauma center and asked for and helped coordinate a helicopter rescue. Faris stayed with the rescue team, assisting with life saving measures, as his wife and child observed. The victim regained pulses and was air lifted to an area hospital. The victim survived and walked out of the hospital a few days later. If not for the efforts of FF/PM Faris, the Ski Patrol and the ER doctors, this patient’s life would not have been saved.