He said as soon as she was rolled over, he took in the slackness of her jaw, the colour of her skin and the noises she was making and instinctively knew she was in cardiac arrest.
He'd seen the exact same signs in a Level 2 First Aid video weeks before.
Turning back the clock to earlier this year, Mr Hunia's daughter Mariama was getting ready to sit her bronze medallion as part of her and her family's commitment to the Whakatane Surf Life Saving Club.
"My wife Harina Warbrick suggested I do it with her so I did," Mr Hunia said. "Then my wife suggested I do the Level 2 course, so I did that too."
As part of the level 2 training, Mr Hunia watched the video, was instructed in the use of defibrillators (defib) and was given a CPR mouthpiece that had been attached to his keyring since. All of this came into play on December 7.
"Once I realised she wasn't breathing, everything seemed to slow down. I immediately started compressions while an off-duty nurse began breathing."
About this time members of the police touch team MIB - Men in Blue had also shown up.
"I asked one of them to go and get a defib out of his car and was told there wasn't one." Someone else high-tailed it to the nearby Aquatic Centre to get their defib.
Constable James Seales says he was struggling get it out of its cover. "Keld was incredibly calm and asked me to pass it over to him," Mr Seales said.
Knowing once it was switched on, the defib would instruct him on what had to be done, Mr Hunia placed the pads where they needed to be and did as the machine instructed.
He said the defib unsuccessfully searched for a pulse at least three times before St John Ambulance staff arrived. Police staff, a volunteer firefighter, an off-duty nurse and Mr Hunia played a part in the rescue, using blankets to create a wall around the patient.
Both Mr Hunia and Mr Seales described the St John paramedic as incredible. "He took over, calmly gave instructions while also telling everyone it was okay," Keld said. Mr Seales drove the ambulance to Whakatane Hospital while Mr Hunia sat in the back.
"The woman was breathing when we left the fields and, by the time we got to the ambulance bay, she was talking to us. The entire incident was amazing to be part of - to see everyone work together in a situation like that was awesome."
And the woman, well-known Whakatane sportswoman and mother Kerry Heitia, couldn't agree more.
"Some bits of what happened are still a bit hazy but I'm glad my marbles are all still here," Ms Heitia said. "I would love to take this opportunity to thank everyone involved and I'm grateful, blessed and happy to be alive."
She said what happened to her should also be used to make people aware of the signs of enlarged hearts. "I have learned a lot about my condition since then."
The incident brought home the importance of first aid.
"Thank you to our wonderful, loving tight community that has humbled me and my family with their love and support."
An App, AED Locations, can be downloaded. AED Locations locates the nearest AED (Automatic External Defibrillator) in New Zealand to your current phone location.
