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A New Jersey EMS chief died last week from complication of COVID-19.
John Careccia, chief of Woodbridge Township Ambulance & Rescue Squad, passed away Friday, Port Reading Fire Company No. 1 announced in an online post. He also served as the rescue squad's training director.
"I decided to pursue a career in Emergency Medical Care in 1993 after seeing what 2 emergency responders did to save my son," Careccia said in a 2015 interview with CPR Headquarters, where he also contributed as a columnist. "I decided then and there that I would pay it forward. I became a volunteer EMT in 1993 and started teaching CPR in 1994. I realized early on that I was able to teach others how to apply life saving techniques effectively especially when it came to using CPR to save lives. I developed a unique approach to teaching CPR more from a practical rather than technical application."
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In 2012, Careccia began his own business, which helps people find inexpensive and effective solutions to mobility and overall health issues, according to his LinkedIn page.