Not getting his morning paper on time turned out to be the best thing that could have happened to Max Hildebrand on Monday.

A Tribune employee who brought Hildebrand his paper later in the day than usual noticed the Bismarck man was slumped over in his vehicle, his legs hanging out into the street.

Rachael Weigel, who redelivers papers to customers who didn't get theirs, called police after she approached Hildebrand's car and saw he wasn't breathing.

"The officer on duty told me I needed to try to get (Hildebrand) out of the car to open up his airway," Weigel said. "I laid him on his back and tilted his head so he could get air. The officer asked me to do CPR. I hadn't done that since high school health class."

As Weigel started chest compressions, officer Les Schumacher arrived to take over. According to a police report, Schumacher could not find Hildebrand's pulse, nor could he detect any breathing. Shortly after Schumacher began forcing air into Hildebrand's lungs, the Bismarck Fire Department showed up and took over CPR. By the time emergency personnel got Hildebrand, 61, into an ambulance, medics were able to detect a faint pulse.

They transported him to St. Alexius Medical Center, where he was listed in critical condition Monday evening. Hildebrand's wife, Nancy, said her husband was in the intensive care unit, but doctors had removed his breathing tubes.

She said she'd talked to her husband before she left their home - at about 8 a.m. Monday - and everything appeared normal.

"He was still feisty this morning," Nancy Hildebrand said. "He had a doctor's appointment and told me to quit reminding him about it. I don't know what happened. He just collapsed."

Weigel called the police department at about 9:15 a.m.

"I was thinking 'What's going on here?' I called out to him, and he didn't respond," Weigel, who's worked for the Tribune for about three weeks, said. "I hope he's OK."

Max and Nancy Hildebrand live in Airport Village, in southeast Bismarck.