Piedmont Columbus Regional has named Richard Starling, Jeff Yepez, Adam Singletary, and Darryl Gay with the Columbus Department of Fire and EMS the organization’s First Friday Heroes for the month of March.

Engine 8 responded to a drug overdose call early one morning. Once on-scene, they found multiple people inside a home high on drugs. While the crew was assessing the people, they discovered one person was missing from the home. They went outside searching the backyard. First responders found a man unresponsive with an abnormally slow breathing rate. The crew administered first aid and called for another transport to take him to the hospital. Without the actions of the Engine 8 crew, this man would have died.

A ceremony with Starling, Yepez, Singletary, Gay and hospital leadership will be held on March 10 at 10 a.m. at Columbus Fire and EMS’ Station 8 to commend them for their response. Their story is also featured throughout the hospital on commemorative posters and Piedmont Columbus Regional’s social media pages.

Piedmont Columbus Regional created the First Friday Hero program in mid-2016 to recognize first responders each month who have gone above and beyond the call of duty. Their line of work is often a thankless job and we want to make the community aware of our local heroes and all they do to make Columbus a better and safer place.