A central Pennsylvania EMT died from a medical emergency he suffered while working a Christmas morning shift, according to the first responder's department, Northeastern EMS.
Robert Kohler Sr. was working at station 23 in Manchester, PA, at around 8:30 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 25, when he experienced a "medical event." Crews treated him at the station before taking him to a nearby hospital, the EMS agency said.
Doctors at the hospital worked for about three hours to save Kohler's life. He was pronounced dead shortly after noon.
Kohler began in the fire service in 1992 and served with a variety of local fire departments over the next few decades. He became an EMR and then eventually an EMT in 1999 and started volunteering with the Manchester Ambulance Club, now known as Northeastern Area EMS. Eventually, Kohler became a full-time, paid EMT for Northeastern Area EMS in 2002, the department said.
Last year, Kohler celebrated his 25th year of working with EMS, and he was recognized by the state for that accomplishment. He also earned the EMT of the year award from Gov. Tom Wolf and VFW post 2493 earlier this year.
