A MINEHEAD mother has publicly thanked her "angel" neighbour and a mystery Good Samaritan who helped to save the life of her choking baby son.

Rebecca Whitewick said the kindness of the two strangers had restored her faith in humanity as she paid tribute to the two men.

"Our son wouldn't be alive if not for the kindness of strangers and it makes me proud to know there are still people out there willing to help others in their hour of need," Rebecca said.

Phoenix Whitewick-Bennett was just 11 weeks old when he choked and stopped breathing after suffering a severe allergic reaction to his formula milk.

Distraught Rebecca rang the emergency services then ran into the street screaming for help with Phoenix's limp and lifeless body cradled in her arms.

"In a matter of seconds he began turning blue and taking less and less breaths.

"I grabbed the phone and called the emergency services as I ran downstairs to get help.

"I can honestly say I have never felt so scared and helpless in my whole life and I ran into the street and just remember screaming for help while trying to get the man on the end of the phone to understand my address.

"I honestly thought my baby boy had died in my arms and I was beside myself," Rebecca said.

A man in a white car drove past her as she stood outside her home in Summerland Avenue and immediately reversed back to see if he could help.

"He told me to get in the car and he would take us to the hospital around the corner but I couldn't as, in my hysteria, I'd left my 17-month-old daughter India-Rose inside on her own.

"This kind gentleman - I still don't know who he is and I would love to say thank you to him - came in, took the phone off me and went to get my daughter.

"During this time, a second gentleman came to the rescue and took the baby from my arms.

"Something inside me trusted him enough to let him take my son and try and help him as my daughter was passed to me to try and calm her down," Rebecca said.

By some miracle, the second Good Samaritan - who Rebecca only knows as a near neighbour called Martin - was fully trained in first aid and resuscitation techniques, including CPR on children and babies.

Unbeknown to Rebecca at the time, Martin carried out five rounds of CPR on Phoenix to restart his breathing.

By the time an ambulance arrived, Phoenix had stopped breathing for a second time and had begun to bleed from his mouth and nose.

"I thought my son was going to die. It was every parent's worse nightmare.

"His tiny body was so shut down by the time we arrived at the hospital that the doctors had trouble getting a line into him and it was very touch and go as to whether he would make it.

"However, after numerous blood tests, antibiotics, x-rays, six days in hospital and a change of milk, Phoenix has made a full recovery and is back home safe and sound," Rebecca said.

Unfortunately, he had a slight relapse last week when he again choked after drinking milk, but Rebecca and partner Kevin Bennett were able to return home with him after a few days of treatment.

Rebecca said she could not thank the mystery motorist or Martin enough for what they had done for Phoenix.

She said: "If it wasn't for Martin and the other kind stranger who stopped to help us that day it could have been a very different story.

"We only found out afterwards that Martin had done five rounds of CPR on Phoenix before he got him to breathe again.

"It turned out that not only had he just been passing on that day, but he was trained in first aid for adults and children."

She added: "Someone was definitely looking out for us that day to send us an angel like Martin."

Kevin and Rebecca are pictured with, from left, India-Rose, Phoenix and their big sister Cequiera.

Photo: Steve Guscott