An unresponsive man inside Barn 30 at the Dutchess County Fairgrounds got a second chance last Friday, after an off-duty firefighter and a registered nurse who happened to be showing cattle at the fair rushed to his side and began CPR. By the time paramedics and additional first responders arrived, the effort had grown into a full multi-agency resuscitation that ended with the patient regaining a pulse before he was ever loaded into an ambulance.
The Rhinebeck Fire Department reported that an unresponsive individual was found inside Barn 30 at the fairgrounds on August 28, according to a press release cited by Hudson Valley Country. Erik Stroka and Skylar Jackson, who were at the 180th Dutchess County Fair to show their cows, were in the barn when the emergency unfolded and immediately rushed over to assist Dutchess County Fair EMS. Stroka is described as a local firefighter and EMT, while Jackson works as an Albany Med registered nurse and former EMT, and the two began CPR right there in the barn.
Dutchess County Fair EMS provided continuous resuscitative care as the situation escalated, and Empress EMS paramedics Nicole LeDoux and Abby Buring soon joined the ongoing resuscitation, delivering advanced life support at the scene. Rhinebeck Fire Department Firefighter/EMT Thomas Beichert also joined the effort inside Barn 30 alongside Stroka and Jackson, according to a Facebook post from the Hudson Valley Wolves detailing the response. Department reports noted that Beichert also serves professionally with the City of Kingston Fire Department, while Stroka serves with the City of Poughkeepsie Fire Department, illustrating how career firefighters across the Hudson Valley often volunteer in each other's local departments during off hours.
Continuous CPR and Multiple Shocks Bring Back a Pulse
Emergency medical responders achieved return of spontaneous circulation after administering continuous CPR and multiple shocks with an automated external defibrillator inside Barn 30, according to The Daily Catch. That clinical milestone, doctors say, marks the moment a cardiac arrest patient's own heart begins beating again on its own. According to 2025 American Heart Association statistics, out-of-hospital cardiac arrest strikes more than 350,000 Americans annually, and immediate bystander CPR can double or triple survival odds even though overall out-of-hospital survival hovers around just 10%.
Paramedic Abby Buring, who helped provide that advanced life support care alongside LeDoux, is also a volunteer member of the Rhinebeck Fire Department, per the same Facebook post from the department. That overlap reflects how closely private ambulance crews and local volunteer fire services work together during county-wide events like the fair. Rhinebeck Fire Department personnel also assisted the overall emergency response as it moved from the barn toward hospital transport.
A Helicopter Landing Zone Improvised at the High School
The patient was first transported to Northern Dutchess Hospital and then later moved by helicopter to Vassar Brothers Medical Center. Because the fairgrounds' primary helicopter landing area was filled with event parking that day, Rhinebeck Fire Department personnel had to establish and staff an alternate air-medical landing zone at nearby Rhinebeck High School so the LifeNet helicopter could complete the transfer, per The Daily Catch's report. Northern Dutchess Hospital in Rhinebeck operates as an 84-bed community hospital, while Vassar Brothers Medical Center in Poughkeepsie is a 350-bed flagship facility with advanced regional cardiac care units, according to the Nuvance Health Learning Institute, explaining why the more critical case needed the longer trip.
The City of Poughkeepsie Police Department reported that Stroka and Jackson immediately assisted fair EMS once the emergency began, and the City of Poughkeepsie Fire Department said the patient had a successful outcome. Dutchess County Fair personnel and bystanders also provided life-saving measures during the response, underscoring how many hands were involved before the patient ever reached a hospital bed.
A Fair Built for Crowds, and the Law Behind Quick Action
The Dutchess County Fair, which ran from Tuesday, August 25 through Sunday, August 30, drew thousands of people to the Rhinebeck fairgrounds this year. Established in 1842 by the Dutchess County Agricultural Society, the fair is the second-largest county fair in New York State, drawing an average of nearly 300,000 visitors across its annual six-day run, according to background compiled by The Daily Catch. That scale helps explain why the fairgrounds' own EMS operation, combined with outside agencies, is built to handle emergencies on short notice.
Founded in 1834, the Rhinebeck Fire Department relies on a volunteer roster of more than 60 members to cover a 35-square-mile territory that includes the 147-acre fairgrounds. New York Public Health Law § 3000-a grants civil immunity to off-duty first responders and bystanders who voluntarily render emergency medical treatment or CPR without expectation of payment, shielding rescuers from liability unless gross negligence occurs, according to the New York State Center for School Health. That statute is part of what allows off-duty professionals like Stroka and Jackson to step in without hesitation when someone collapses in a crowd.
The Rhinebeck Fire Department officially credited a multi-agency network for the successful outcome, citing coordinated cooperation among Dutchess County Fair EMS, Empress EMS, the Rhinebeck Fire Department, New York State Police, and fair security staff. The patient was ultimately transported to the emergency room after the airlift to Vassar Brothers Medical Center, closing out an emergency that started with two off-duty responders who simply happened to be showing cattle a few stalls away.
