Edmonton teen uses CPR learnt in school to save homeless man
Posted April 2, 2026 10:42 am.
Mahdi Al Adab was out to grab a sandwich on Edmonton’s Jasper Avenue last Friday, when he found a homeless man who had collapsed.
“I saw that he basically just collapsed, that he was sitting, then he collapsed, face-first. I saw him like he was unconscious, so I was compelled to help,” the teen explained. “I didn’t actually expect that to happen. It was really unexpected.”
When Al Adab later found out the homeless man was not breathing, he quickly performed CPR, keeping the man alive until paramedics arrived. He immediately put the first aid treatment he is still learning in high school to good use.
“I’ve always wanted to help people and to be able to save someone’s life. That’s like my dream, so I just felt like these skills would actually help me and like achieving that,” Al Adab explained.
The act of this good Samaritan shows the importance of CPR training and how a simple and basic three to four-hour course can help save someone’s life.
“Most cardiac arrests happen outside of the hospital, so often in public or at home, and those first few minutes are critical and having a bystander or a volunteer that knows CPR will make the biggest difference,” said Mark Kascha, the CEO and a CPR Trainer with St. Mark James Training.
For Al Adab, he was glad that the man was alive, hoping to help more people as he plans a career in healthcare in the future.
“Even if I don’t get anything in return, it’s just a good feeling.”
