For parishioners to feel as though they've been saved at church is not uncommon, but for one churchgoer in Fairfield, it was a particularly unique experience.
Carl Benson and his wife were attending Sunday morning services at Black Rock Congregational Church when Benson collapsed, his heart stopped and he stopped breathing, church officials said.
Other parishioners quickly carried him into another room just off the sanctuary and that's where the miracle happened.
About a year ago, Black Rock bought an emergency defibrillator and, as luck would have it, a visiting physician and a nurse were in the congregation when Benson became ill.
They used the defibrillator to administer a shock to Benson's heart. It worked.
The ailing parishioner coughed and then began to breathe on his own before emergency crews showed up and rushed him to the hospital, where he underwent emergency surgery.
He is now recuperating.
