Thousands in Atlanta walk, raising over $2M for American Heart Association

ATLANTA - Thousands came out for the American Heart Association's Heart Walk in Atlanta Saturday to raise money for heart health research.

Many people had family members to walk for.

"It was my grandma. She had a heart transplant a couple of years ago," Nassir Tabbs said.

"I'm walking for my mom. She actually passed away from a heart attack," Erica Miller explained.

But for others, it's even more personal.

"I was in the basement of my home on my treadmill running. I felt pressure, and I remember pressing the stop button and I passed out," Scott Webb said.

Webb said when he collapsed, his artery was 99% blocked.

"The cardiologist that I still see today said likely your heart stopped beating when you passed out. You hit the floor hard enough to start back," he explained.

While he got regular physicals he never got his heart numbers checked.

"If you have a history in your family, and I did, of stroke and heart attack and all that, you need to go and get checked," Webb explained.

"Heart disease number one killer in Georgia, and actually, in the nation. So just gaining awareness prevention and treatment and these dollars go to that," Chair of the Metro Atlanta Heart Walk Robert Bunch said.

$2.6 million were raised by the 5,000 walkers representing 70 different companies.