Aug. 5--PASCO -- Katelyn Kinne has returned the gift of life to one of the people who gave it to her -- her father.
It began as Jeff Kinne, who's profoundly allergic to bee stings, uncovered a wasp nest when he moved a propane tank outside his Pasco home Monday.
When he realized the yellow jackets had given him a couple of zaps to both ankles, Jeff gave himself a shot of epinephrine.
Then he warned his daughters: "If I go unconscious, I need you to call 911."
At 5:26 p.m., he collapsed on the kitchen floor, and 13-year-old Katelyn and 6-year-old Victoria quickly followed orders and made the 911 call.
"I was really scared," said Katelyn. "But I kept calm."
Remembering lessons on how to perform CPR from a baby-sitting class she took two years ago, Katelyn checked her father's chest and wrist for a pulse. Then she realized his swollen tongue had obstructed his breathing.
"It sounded like he was snoring," said Victoria, who bravely held the telephone as her older sister received instructions from the 911 dispatcher.
Emergency dispatcher Kim Schultz led Katelyn through the steps, helping the teen stay focused.
"We do take several calls from a child who is alone with a parent or patient," said Barbara Hart, a supervisor with Franklin County Dispatch. She said Schultz followed emergency medical dispatching protocol as she gave Katelyn instructions on how to perform CPR.
When police and paramedics arrived at the house at 5:39 p.m., Pasco police Officer Zach Fairley took over resuscitation efforts. Kinne was then taken to Lourdes Medical Center where he was kept overnight.
No stranger to bee stings, Kinne said he had another close call in 2006 when he was stung by bees while officiating a football game at Kahlotus High School.
He's now enrolled in venom therapy to desensitize his reaction to stings.
Though school doesn't start for almost another month, Kinne said the family learned a valuable lesson: "We all learned to call 911 a lot sooner."
