Heart attack victim saved by 'angel' passer-by

As Charles collapsed, his 51-year-old son Paul, a trained first aider, told his stunned mother that he thought his father was already dead.

But trained life saver Lesley Usher was nearby and amazingly she was carrying the one piece of equipment that could save him–a defibrillator.

Lesley (44), from Hemswell, Lincolnshire, was caught up in the life-or-death drama when 73-year-old Charles, a retired security guard, collapsed last May Day during a family outing to Hemswell Cliff Antique Centre, Lincolnshire.

Now Charles’s grateful wife Sandra (65), from Thurnscoe, has donated £1,000 to Lesley, a first responder for Lincolnshire Integrated Voluntary Emergency Services (LIFE), who will use the cash to buy another defibrillator.

As Charles collapsed by his car from a heart attack, his son, also from Thurnscoe, tried to resuscitate him.

That's when life saver Lesley came on the scene and took over Charles’ treatment, before he was rushed to Lincoln County Hospital. He was later transferred to Nottingham’s City Hospital where he had open heart surgery. He has since fully recovered.

Lesley was on her way to the May Day celebrations in Hemswell village with two elderly people from the care home where she works when she was caught up in the dramatic fight for life.

Sandra, who received an MBE in 2006 for services to charity, is a volunteer at Rotherham Hospice.

She said: “When Paul said his father was dead, I just froze. We’re all so grateful to Lesley. We had a May Day miracle.

“She brought him back with the defibrillator before the ambulance crew arrived.

“Had Lesley not happened to be on the scene with the right equipment at the right time, I could have lost my husband.

“The problem is you have 20 people who are trained to use these defibrillator machines, but LIFE has only two machines so that’s why we wanted to provide another.”