Point Beach Councilman Rizzo Unsure About Running for Re-election Following Recent Collapse

Point Beach Councilman Frank Rizzo said on Thursday that he doesn't know if he will still run for re-election after a recent collapse in his backyard, the latest in a series of health problems.

Rizzo, who is now back home recuperating after a hospitalization, said when he collapsed on July 16, his nephew, Eddie Panuska, his neighbors and the Point Pleasant First Aid and Emergency Squad saved his life.

"The first aid squad was great - they put oxygen on me and got me breathing again," Rizzo said.

The squad transported him to Ocean Medical Center in Brick.

"They thought I had a heart attack at first," said Rizzo. "But then they weren't sure."

He said he is waiting for more reports and at least one more doctor visit to find out exactly what caused him to stop breathing and collapse.

Rizzo's name is on the ballot to run as a Democrat for re-election. When asked on Thursday afternoon if he still wants to do that, in light of a number of recent health problems, he said, "I don't know."

Rizzo, sounding exhausted, said he is still experiencing a lot of chest pain from CPR performed on the 16th.

"I had triple bypass surgery in 1997, so the CPR bruised my chest, I still have a lot of pain," he said.

On July 16, Rizzo was sitting on his back patio on Harvard Avenue.

"I felt a little dry, so I got up to go get a glass of water and I collapsed," he said. "My daughter screamed for Eddie. I was having trouble breathing and they couldn't get a pulse at first. I don't remember a lot of what happened. I woke up the next day in the hospital."

Point Beach Police Detective Pat Petruzziello said police and the first aid squad were called to the scene at 12:10 p.m. that day and arrived seven minutes later.

The incident took place when Matt McGovern, 16, an Eagle Scout who lives in of Roseland, and another friend were visiting Joe Abate, 16, a scout from North Caldwell, at his family's beach house in Point Beach.

When Rizzo collapsed, the two boys and Alex Salamone of North Caldwell had been listening to music on Abate's docked boat when McGovern heard a woman screaming nearby, "Edward! Edward!"

The boat was docked in a slip across the street from Abate's home.

"Just the way she was screaming, I knew something was wrong," McGovern said. 

What McGovern heard was Rizzo's adult daughter, Lois Rizzo, calling her cousin, Edward, for help after Rizzo had collapsed.

"Thank God he heard it," said Abate, who told his friends to stay with the boat while he checked to see if there was a problem.

Abate recounts when he ran up the dock, he encountered a distraught Lois Rizzo watching her cousin, Eddie, performing CPR on her father.

As Abate says, all his Boy Scout lifesaving training "kicked in."

At the time, Rizzo was not breathing and had no pulse.

Abate took over the CPR and after a minute detected a weak pulse in Rizzo.

Meanwhile, Abate's mother, Lorraine Abate, sensing the commotion, arrived on the scene. Abate, while continuing to administer CPR, yelled to his mom to get McGovern.

McGovern talked Abate through the lifesaving steps.

"When I got there, he (Rizzo) had taken his first big breath. Joe was checking his pulse at the neck and wrist. I told Joe to lift his head," McGovern recalls.

While McGovern did provide a calming presence, at that point, Abate says, "I can't remember what Matt said. I was in a zone."

While Salamone stayed behind to keep an eye on the younger children, Abate's mother, father and aunt returned to the scene.

Lorraine Abate brought an ice pack for Rizzo, while her sister shielded Abate and Rizzo from the heat with an umbrella. 

After administering the ice pack, Abate said Rizzo's pulse became stronger. "I became more confident," Abate said.

The first aid squad took over, administering oxygen and transporting Rizzo to the hospital. Jerry Meaney, squad captain, said he cannot discuss the incident without a signed release from Rizzo due to privacy laws.

Rizzo also said he is grateful to his nephew, the first aid sqaud, Abate and McGovern.

"He is a dynamite kid," Rizzo said, referring to Abate. "I have known him for years, a perfect gentleman, polite and kind. These kids were there at the right time. They brought me back."

Lois Rizzo said she is grateful to Abate.

"He is a very dear friend. He saved my father's life. My father is resting and alive because of Joey Abate."

Both Abate and McGovern credit their Boy Scout training with helping them through this life emergency.

"Our parents were congratulating us. It really did not kick in until later that we were there for a reason," McGovern said.