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Couple save life. Twice. In same place.

By Mark Cox
February 10, 2011 at 3:39 pm

So, picture the scene: you’re down on your knees with a defibrillator, busily trying to shock back into life a dying man who’s collapsed and stopped breathing. What’s the last thing you’d expect to see? That’s right: another bloke whose life you saved two years ago at exactly the same spot, watching your latest escapade from over his garden gate.

This bizarre scenario unfolded recently when first aiders Roy and Pat Thomas were called to an emergency in their little Welsh village of Solva. A man had collapsed with a heart attack and, technically, died outside the local post office – but the couple got there in minutes and, with three shocks from their portable defibrillator, brought the casualty back from the brink. The paramedics arrived soon afterwards and the man recovered.

So how did they get there so quickly? Roy and Pat are Red Cross first responders – that is, first aiders who live in a rural area and have a hotline to the local ambulance service. With the best will in the world, ambulances can sometimes take a while to reach rural locations – whereas these local, well-trained volunteers can be on scene within minutes.

Two years earlier, the couple saved the life of 67-year-old Victor Reynolds – using the same defibrillator – when he collapsed in the same spot.

Although they were surprised to see the walking, talking result of their earlier handiwork watching the latest response, Roy and Pat weren’t put off at all. They even popped over for a quick visit once the emergency was over. “We had a chat with Victor, afterwards,” Roy said. “He’s looking good.”

He added: “That’s the second cardiac arrest we’ve attended directly outside the shop. I’m getting a bit worried about their prices…”

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Tags: emergency response, First aid, first aid tips, volunteer, Volunteering, volunteers

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This entry was posted on Thursday, February 10th, 2011 at 3:39 pm and is filed under First aid. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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