'You don't think twice': Hull eye doctor saves commuter's life on ferry

After a medical emergency, an eye doctor from Hull saved a woman’s life during his evening commute home on the ferry.

Paul Cangiano, an eye doctor out of the North End, was just feet off the Long Wharf dock Thursday around 4:30 pm when he noticed a fellow commuter at his feet.

“I was checking my emails, and I heard a boom,” said Cangiano.

He told Boston 25 Friday that the woman was 65-years-old, and appeared to be suffering from a seizure.

He continued, “She wasn’t moving. So, I pretty much ran to her. You don’t think twice, you just do it.”

Cangiano said he was also helped by a nurse from Mass General who was on board.

“I said, ‘Get back on the dock,’ because we needed 911 we needed emergency services.”

The two reportedly began CPR until they noticed she wasn’t breathing and didn’t have a pulse.

Cangiano said he had to use an AED.

He added, “We did shock her once … I’d never physically done that on a patient. I’ve been trained, but never done it.”

The two continued to before CPR.

“All of a sudden, she popped right out of it. It was amazing.”

Cangiano said EMTs took the responsive woman to Mass General Hospital.

He continued, “By the time EMTs came aboard, we were talking. I was holding her hand, we’re talking about where she lives, this and that.”

Although an eye doctor, Cangiano said he and other medical professionals are always ready to act in the most dire situations.

“You have to do it treat people the way you want to be treated,” he finished. “If something happens, you just take care of it.”

The MBTA said the emergency response caused delays for roughly three hours Thursday evening.

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