A Morgan Hill man died of sudden cardiac arrest while playing
hockey at a practice rink in San Jose Sunday, just hours before a
man from Alameda died at the same place and of the same cause.
A Morgan Hill man died of sudden cardiac arrest while playing hockey at a practice rink in San Jose Sunday, just hours before a man from Alameda died at the same place and of the same cause.
Brian Kobata, 38, was playing a game with his adult league team when he collapsed on the ice at the Sharks Ice facility at 1500 South 10th St., according to San Jose Fire Department spokesmen.
Paramedics arrived at the rink about 9 p.m. to respond to a medical call at the facility, which is the site of games for an adult hockey league that played Sunday night, and is also used by the San Jose Sharks professional hockey team for practice.
Capt. Jose Chavez said Kobata’s teammates and ice rink staff were performing first aid on Kobata when paramedics arrived. The facility’s staff used an automatic external defibrillator – a shocking device that can jump-start an irregular heart – on Kobata, Chavez said.
Kobata worked as an internal auditor at Anritsu in Morgan Hill. Besides playing hockey, he enjoyed cycling and riding his motorcycle. His wife, Heidi, is pregnant with the couple’s first child, according to a friend and former co-worker of Kobata’s.
“Brian was one of the nicest people, if not the nicest person, I’ve met in my life,” said Robin Kendall, who worked with Kobata at Anritsu for 10 years. “Everyone he came in contact with, he was thoughtful to.”
Later the same night, the fire department responded again to Sharks Ice when Kelly Calabro, 41 of Alameda, collapsed on the ice, also apparently after his heart suddenly stopped. Chavez said emergency medical crews arrived to that incident about 12:20 a.m. Monday.
Staff at the rink also performed first-aid, including applying the difibrillator, on Calabro.
Chavez said because the facility had the difibrillator on site and staff were well-trained to use the device, both Kobata and Calabro “had a fighting chance.”
“The civilians that started the CPR process and used the (difibrillator) did a really good job,” Chavez said. “(Kobata and Calabro’s) chances were greatly improved.”
The use of an difibrillator to resuscitate a victim of sudden cardiac arrest significantly improves the victim’s chances of survival, Chavez explained. “Unfortunately, the outcome was not good this time,” he said.
In San Jose, paramedics respond to an average of two incidents of sudden cardiac arrest per day, according to Chavez. However, it is “unheard of” for both incidents to happen at the same location less than three hours apart. The last time an difibrillator was used at Sharks Ice was about four years ago, Chavez noted.
Chavez was unaware if either man had prior medical conditions and did not know to which hospital they were transported.
Sharks Ice is operated by Silicon Valley Sports and Entertainment. Chavez described it as a “very busy facility.”
