CABOT, Ark. — The collapse of Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin Monday night in Cincinnati was a shocking and emotional sight for many NFL fans across the country.
"That is the worst-case scenario," Head Athletic Trainer at the Cabot School District Jason Cates said.
For those who are tasked with keeping players safe, it's even tougher to watch.
"We went through the same process at the previous school I was at," Cabot School District Athletic Trainer Keith Shireman said. "We had two in the span of six months that happened."
A collapse of a student-athlete, with that student surviving thanks to quick responses. It was a similar reaction to the one Hamlin saw from the Bills' medical staff on the field.
During that initial reaction, those staffers used something that many Arkansas schools use as well.
"They are safe, they were effective and they save lives," Cates said.
Cates worked on legislation in 2009 to require Automated External Defibrillators – commonly known as AEDs – in schools, after a Little Rock School District student collapsed and died.
It's not the only piece of legislation on this as others were introduced in 2011 and 2017
"All coaches and volunteers have training once every three years in concussion, sudden cardiac, heat illness and communicable disease," Deputy Executive Director of the Arkansas Activities Association Joey Walters said.
Those laws have helped shape the way all sports are handled in Arkansas, especially when it comes to safety.
"The key is to be prepared to react to it and handle the situation in the appropriate way, and a quick way," Walters said.
Recognizing those symptoms is simple. Fainting – like what seemingly happened to Hamlin – is on the extreme end.
Things like unexplained shortness of breath, chest pain, dizziness, racing heartbeat and extreme fatigue are also signs.
While this is something Cates and Shireman never want to see happen, they're ready if they do.
"The time is now, parents can ask those questions and go to the athletic directors to the superintendent and ask them those questions and see if these are in place," Shireman said. "And if they are, they can rest assured that their child will be taken care of properly."