Old Town resident recalls how grandson saved his life

OLD TOWN – “My hero(es)” were the words written at the top of the notebook paper Howard Devaney slipped across the table Wednesday at his Bickmore Manor apartment. The handwritten explanation went on to describe how a 911 phone call made last month by his 12-year-old grandson had saved his life.

Jimi Spruce of Orono was spending the night with his “Opa” on Sunday, Aug. 30, when his grandfather woke up not feeling well, Devaney said.

Little did he know how sick he really was.

When he got out of bed to go check on Jimi, Howard made it only a few steps to the bathroom of his third-floor apartment when he knew something was terribly wrong.

Howard later learned he was suffering from a ruptured abdominal aneurysm and had severe internal bleeding.

Sitting in the bathroom, he yelled to his grandson, “Opa’s in trouble, I need help fast.” Two hollers awakened Jimi, who immediately called 911.

“He did a beautiful job and he actually saved my life,” Howard said.

Howard, 71, was rushed to Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor by Old Town Fire and Rescue.

“I was concerned about what was happening to Opa,” Jimi said Wednesday, sitting in the recliner at his grandfather’s apartment. The Orono Middle School seventh-grader took his nose out of the Popular Mechanics magazine he was reading just long enough to explain the events of that night.

“I knew he was going to be OK because I know they’re really fast,” Jimi said about the emergency personnel who showed up.

The first emergency medical technicians called for backup to help carry Howard out of the apartment to a stretcher in the hallway. He was rushed to EMMC, where he immediately was taken to the operating room.

The condition is life-threatening and the 13th-leading cause of death in the United States, according to a Web article by Dr. Robert O’Connor, associate professor of surgery, emergency medicine, at Thomas Jefferson University.

Jimi explained that he didn’t really think about what he was doing, but said he knew he needed to get his Opa help, and quickly.

“You wouldn’t believe the way they came,” Howard said of the Old Town rescue crew. Jimi heard the sirens coming down the street and pressed the door buzzer to let the rescue workers in.

“He was wonderful,” Old Town firefighter Chris Baker said in a phone interview Tuesday. “The fact that his grandson was able to call and give information in a clear, concise manner was critical.”

The firefighters and EMTs who responded knew Howard from the regular building safety checks they conduct. Some of them stop by from time to time to see the more than 1,800 police badges from all over the country that Howard has on display.

He and Jimi have worked on the collection for 51/2 years.

“He’s a great guy … a good person,” Jimi said of his grandfather, noting that his Opa also has a great sense of humor.

Howard spent 23 days in the hospital. Having been to the VA clinic not long before he became ill, Howard said the doctors had given him a clean bill of health.

“The VA said I was in good health, especially for a guy who’s 71,” Howard said. “And I felt like a young 71.”

Life is different now. The kitchen counter at his apartment looks like a pharmacy, which Howard said he isn’t used to.

“I feel good,” Howard said. “[But] it’s taking awhile.” His abdominal muscles are still healing and he still has staples in from the surgery.

Doctors told Howard he was lucky to have survived, stating that the survival rate was only one in 100.

“Somebody was looking out for me,” he said, glancing at Jimi in the recliner.