Veteran reporter Richard Cole, 59, suffered a heart attack Monday while working in the San Francisco Daily newsroom, but was rushed to the hospital by a fellow reporter, Nicole Baldocchi, who realized he needed immediate medical attention. Cole said yesterday from his hospital bed that Baldocchi saved his life. The SF Daily published this account of the episode in today’s edition. Cole, who is hospitalized at California Pacific Medical Center’s cardiac unit on Buchanan Street, said he was told by doctors that he will be released Thursday. He expects to return to work in a couple of weeks. Cole previously worked at the Associated Press and the Palo Alto Daily News. At the Palo Alto paper, he covered the Scott Peterson trial in Redwood City.