AVON, Conn. _ Mark Boughton, a top GOP contender for Connecticut governor, collapsed at a candidates' event in Avon on Thursday night and required CPR before he was rushed to the hospital.
Boughton, the mayor of Danbury, fell ill during a candidate meet-and-greet at the North House restaurant in Avon. Boughton, 54, was attended to by another candidate, Prasad Srinivasan, a physician and state representative.
"It was one of the scariest moments of my life because we were not in a hospital setting," Srinivasan said during an interview in the ballroom where Boughton collapsed. "He looked paler than pale until the pulse came back. This was not a fainting spell. He was in tough shape."
Srinivasan added, "He's a lucky man. He's lucky to be alive."
Srinivasan's wife and others called out to him to assist from the other side of the ballroom after Boughton fell in a corner of the room near an exit.
"He was having a seizure," said Srinivasan, who is an allergist. "His pulse was very, very weak. We gave him CPR, and he continued to seize. ... He was actively seizing. ... He was in some form of cardiac arrest because he had a very, very feeble pulse."
Boughton's campaign issued an update on his condition late Thursday.
"Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton fell ill at an event in Avon earlier this evening. He is currently resting comfortably at UConn Health Center in Farmington."
Boughton's rivals were said to be in a state of shock. Observers said Boughton was revived and was alert when taken by ambulance to UConn Health.
"I just heard somebody yelling for a doctor," said Dave Walker, the former U.S. comptroller general and fellow gubernatorial candidate. "He did have to have CPR."
Walker said Boughton appeared to be stabilized as he was transported to the hospital.
"We're obviously all praying for him and hoping for a full and speedy recovery for him," he said. "It obviously put a big damper on the night."
Mark Lauretti, Boughton's mayoral counterpart from Shelton and another competitor for governor, said it was very upsetting.
"Everybody was mingling and the next thing he was on the ground," Lauretti said. "It was a scene that gives you pause when you see someone who you've known for years and have played golf with for years in an unnatural condition. The best thing that could happen was they cleared the room and let qualified people do what they need to do."
Last summer, Boughton underwent brain surgery to remove a noncancerous tumor from behind his ear. He returned to the political scene a month later with an appearance at the state GOP's Prescott Bush Awards fundraising dinner.
