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"Tell him not to stop until they take over": 911 call when high school athlete collapsed


Matthew Mangine Jr. was a 16-year-old who loved to play soccer. He was a rising junior on the soccer team at St. Henry High School and a member of the Kings Hammer Soccer Club. On June 16, he unexpectedly died just one day after practices began under the KHSAA's COVID-19 guidelines. (Magine Family)
Matthew Mangine Jr. was a 16-year-old who loved to play soccer. He was a rising junior on the soccer team at St. Henry High School and a member of the Kings Hammer Soccer Club. On June 16, he unexpectedly died just one day after practices began under the KHSAA's COVID-19 guidelines. (Magine Family)
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ERLANGER, Ky. (WKRC) - On June 16, 2020, a call came into Boone County 911 at 7:16 p.m. from a high school soccer practice.

Within a minute, at 7:17 p.m., an alarm was sent to the Point Pleasant Fire Department off Turfway Road in Erlanger.

Two minutes later, at 7:19 p.m., units were on their way.

Two minutes after that, at 7:21 p.m., EMS arrived at St. Henry High School's practice field. During the 911 call, a caller mentioned chest compressions.

It had been at least five minutes since Matthew Mangine Jr. collapsed on the practice field.

Dr. Samantha Scareno-Miller is an expert in athletic emergency response. She works at West Virginia University as the program director of the Division of Athletic Training.

“If you get an AED on somebody within three minutes of collapse, their chance of survival is 90%,” Dr. Scarneo-Miller said.

Two sources with knowledge told Local 12 Investigates that St. Henry has an athletic trainer, an AED, or defibrillator, and an emergency action plan.

“We want to get that AED on somebody as fast as possible,” Dr. Scarneo-Miller said. “The gold standard is to have an AED on every sideline."

Kentucky law does not require an AED for athletics. The Kentucky High School Sports Associations says there should be an AED on-site or one accessible within three minutes.

The call for service, the incident report and the coroner's report do not mention if an AED was used once EMS arrived. Two medical experts say the device saves lives.

As Dr. Scarneo-Miller, getting an AED on someone within three minutes of collapse gives them a 90% chance of survival.

“For every one minute that that’s delayed, you reduce your chance for survival by 10%,” said Dr. Riana Pryor, an expert in acclimation and environmental impact on athletes.

The 911 call for Mangine is five-minutes long. Only chest compressions are mentioned.

On June 16, Mangine was pronounced dead at 8:03 p.m. -- less than an hour after he collapsed.

Local 12 Investigates asked St. Henry to provide a copy of their emergency action plan and who is supposed to be aware of their athletic EAP procedures last week. We never received a response, but we’ll keep checking.

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