COVINGTON, Ga. - Customers who decided to round up their purchase at Firehouse Subs can once again see their money come back to support local public safety organizations thanks to the $15,000 Firehouse Subs Public Safety Foundation grant that went to purchase a Lucas 3 Chest Compression System for the Covington Fire Department. 

"Basically, with human error, we get tired, what this thing does is it will continue to do chest compressions for up to 45 minutes on battery and then we can plug it in and it will go forever," Danny Garner, CFD division chief of training, told The Covington News. "Hopefully, it doesn't take that long to get a patient out, but it can be used sitting or laying on the ground, so if we have to put the person in a stair chair, we can use it there. 

"Basically, it relieves two people from having to do chest compressions so they can do other things like IVs and medications."

Garner said the truck selected to house the Lucas 3 system responds to every cardiac arrest call the department receives. 

"It's like having a whole other person on the scene," CFD Chief Jeremy Holmes said. "It saves lives."

"CPR is exhausting," Garner said. "If you do two minutes of CPR and you're dripping sweat and your arms are tired and burning, you don't want to let up because if you let up then ..."

Grant Rohletter, Firehouse franchisee, said it is a special experience to be able to give back to the community that gives to them.

"We have a couple of stores in Atlanta and it is a lot harder because it is a much bigger jurisdiction," he said. "You really can see it going to work in here in a somewhat smaller community."

This is the second grant CFD has received from Firehouse, with the first coming two years ago to provide new hoses.