Every morning that she wakes up, Jo Ann Mitamura of Waipahu is grateful to be alive and moving.

Mitamura, a longtime employee at the state Airports Division, suffered a stroke in January but was able to recover following surgery without any paralysis, thanks to the quick thinking of a co-worker that afternoon who called the emergency line.

A team of airport firefighters responded and took her to the emergency room immediately.

On Tuesday the 59-year-old switchboard operator thanked her co-worker and the team of firefighters for saving her life at her office at Daniel K. Inouye International Airport.

“My father had a stroke a long time ago,” she said. “He couldn’t work and suffered paralysis. He had to give up fishing, what he loved, and I know what he went through, so I thank God every day for you folks, took me right away to the hospital, did the surgery and I survived. … I thank you from the bottom of my heart.”

There was laughter and camaraderie as Mitamura, who has worked for the state Department of Transportation for 27 years, reminisced about that day and thanked the team with lei and boxes of candy.

Mitamura had just returned to her seat and was sitting in front of her switchboard after lunch. She remembers her co-worker, Jon Takitani, saying something and not responding.

Takitani said he was simply following his gut instinct that day.

“She kept staring at the computer, even though I was talking to her,” he said. “Something was wrong.”

Fortunately, the state Airport Rescue and Fire Fighting team arrived quickly, assessed the situation and sprang into action upon recognizing the symptoms of a stroke.

Mitamura joked about how she refused to go to the emergency room but that the team lifted her out of the chair and onto a gurney. She apologized to the team for being so stubborn that day.

“I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for you, Jon,” she told Takitani. “My family thanks you.”

She is now taking care of her health, she said, and checking up with the doctor every three months. She called her workplace and co-workers a second family.

The American Heart Association shares an acronym — F.A.S.T. — as a way to recognize and remember the sudden signs of a stroke.

The “F” stands for face drooping, where one side of the face droops or is numb. The “A” stands for arm weakness, “S” for speech difficulty and “T” for time to call 911.

Mitamura underwent surgery to remove a clot from her neck at the hospital that afternoon, and her doctor said she was lucky. She was able to still speak the next day, she said, and returned to work two weeks later.

Fire Chief Glen Mitchell said the medical response team is trained to recognize these symptoms but that a crucial part is the “T,” in which someone calls emergency services. Timing is critical for stroke victims, he said, and he praised Takitani for taking action.

“Although our men and women are trained, the component we cannot control is the response from the public,” he said. “The key is to make sure that someone tells someone and calls 911. This is the perfect example of how the FAST acronym was used and a life was saved.”

SPOT A STROKE F.A.S.T.

>> Face drooping. Does one side of the face droop or is it numb? Ask the person to smile.

>> Arm weakness. Is one arm weak or numb? Ask the person to raise both arms. Does one arm drift downward?

>> Speech difficulty. Is speech slurred?

>> Time to call 911. If the person shows any of these symptoms, even if they go away, call 911 and get them to the hospital immediately.

>> Other symptoms include sudden numbness of the leg, confusion, trouble seeing in one or both eyes, trouble walking, loss of balance and sudden severe headache with no known cause.

Source: American Heart Association, American Stroke Association