Netflix’s Stranger Things has won 12 Primetime Emmys, and tens of millions of fans over the course of its four seasons, but it may have ultimately achieved something even greater than that—it saved a man’s life.
A 12-year-old named Austen MacMillan was able to revive his behavioral therapist Jason Piquette after he partially drowned by using CPR that he learned while watching the television show.
MacMillan was swimming with Piquette in his home’s pool when at a certain point the therapist wanted to see how long he could hold his breath underwater.
He racked up an impressive 6 minutes—though it’s unclear how many of those minutes were voluntary because what is clear is that at a certain point, he lost consciousness.
MacMillan quickly grabbed the man after realizing he wasn’t coming up, dragged him out of the water, and began running around the house screaming for help. When it didn’t come, he returned to Piquette’s side and performed CPR.
The whole ordeal was captured on a ring camera.
“I just saw it from a TV show—Stranger Things,” Austen told ABC News. “After I gave him CPR, he woke up a few minutes later.”
Piquette believes he lost consciousness about 30 seconds into his underwater attempt, but doesn’t know why.
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“It was definitely a really proud mom moment. He’s really brave and courageous,” said Christina MacMillan, Austen’s mom.
It’s a reminder that movies and television aren’t a complete waste of time, and that if you happen to be planning a CPR scene for your production, make sure it’s the real technique—it could save a life.
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