Police officers everywhere dedicate their lives to protecting and serving the people of their jurisdictions.

In St. Clairsville earlier this year, one officer demonstrated his commitment to those principles by saving a life.

City Council and other officials last week commended Officer Justin Work for his quick actions and life-saving efforts. Police Chief Matt Arbenz described the situation in which Officer Justin Work found himself.

“On Jan. 29 this year at 4 a.m., Officer Work was called to respond to a possible overdose,” Arbenz said, adding that Work found a woman who was unresponsive and not breathing on a couch. However, he had an anti-opioid agent handy. “Officer Work administered Narcan and attempted to wake the victim with no positive effect.”

According to Arbenz, Work was not deterred and continued to administer aid to the woman in distress. He administered chest compressions and stimulation techniques until emergency medical responders could arrive. Those EMS professionals later “confirmed that Officer Work’s efforts brought the woman back to life,” Arbenz said.

Work, for his part, has been humble about the attention he has received in the wake of the incident.

“I walked in and dealt with the situation as I was trained to,” Work told our reporter. “I just kept trying to keep going until the EMS guys got there. … The people there told me she was probably under the influence of drugs.”

Regardless of how the woman ended up in this terrible situation, Work is the reason she survived. He drew upon his training, kept a cool head and did what he had to do. That is a fine example of how our local police officers protect and serve our communities every day. We commend him.