Family says Coble has made ‘remarkable’ progress since heart attack

Former Columbia Mayor Bob Coble’s family is optimistic he’ll make a full recovery after suffering a heart attack and undergoing quadruple bypass surgery last week.

In a statement released Friday afternoon, Coble’s son, Daniel, called Coble’s progress “remarkable.”

“This week, Dad regained consciousness and has been sitting up, asking for his phone, so he can get back to work,” Daniel Coble said in the statement. “We recognize that Dad has a lot of friends, colleagues and supporters who want to visit him – but it’s still too soon. He still needs time to rest.”

“Mayor Bob,” 61, was rushed to Providence Hospital from the State House where he was working as a lobbyist last Wednesday afternoon, April 15. Doctors performed quadruple bypass surgery that night and into the next morning.

Coble served as mayor from 1990 to 2010.

He turns 62 on Monday.

This story was originally published April 24, 2015 at 4:16 PM with the headline "Family says Coble has made ‘remarkable’ progress since heart attack."