LAUDERDALE-BY-THE-SEA, Fla. -- On Sept. 26, Maria Villarta and her husband went to the beach in Lauderdale-By-The-Sea on the anniversary of the death of their daughter to reflect on her life. In a bizarre twist of fate, the 40-year-old nurse and mother of three young boys almost lost her life.

Villarta's husband and sons went to get food and returned to find her lying on the beach, unresponsive. She wasn't breathing and didn't have a pulse. Her husband, who is trained as a physician in the Philippines, began CPR in an attempt to revive his wife.

Dr. Michael Farrell, who had just finished his shift at Holy Cross Hospital, was dining at a beachfront restaurant when he saw what was happening and went to investigate.

When Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue crews arrived, they began aggressive resuscitative efforts, including Induced Cooling by EMS (ICE). The cutting-edge procedure, which was instituted by BSFR in April 2008, involves pre-hospital cooling of heart attack victims using near-frozen medications to lower the patient's body temperature.

Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue is the first department in Florida and one of a handful of departments in the nation implementing pre-hospital hypothermic resuscitation.

On Wednesday, Villarta and her husband thanked the Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue crew, Dr. Farrell and the hospital staff for their role in her care.

"This represents great strides in delivering 21st century medicine," said BSFR EMS Chief Steve Krivjanik. "As the standard of care continues to evolve, we're seeing more hospitals and municipal EMS providers coming on board with this treatment."

Villarta is the eighth patient to receive ICE since its introduction by BSFR.