TWO Porlock men were this week being hailed as heroes after they gave vital first aid to an unconscious elderly man, using a defibrillator bought with money raised by the village.

Denise Sage, who organised the installation of the machine at Porlock Weir, said: “I think it’s fair to say that without their cool-headedness and the defibrillator, the patient concerned would probably no longer be alive.”

The man, in his 70s, whose name has been withheld, became ill at his harbour-side cottage at Porlock Weir last Tuesday and lost consciousness. He was later flown by helicopter to Bristol and is believed to be making a recovery.

The drama began when Blathwayt Estate workers Royston Binding and Dave Robinson were on their way home about 4pm when a woman waved from a nearby cottage.

Royston said: “At first we thought she was just being friendly but we then realised that something was wrong and went across to find that her husband was unconscious and seemed to have suffered some kind of medical emergency.

“His wife was already speaking to the ambulance service who said a defibrillator was needed. I knew there was one in the car park so I ran to get it. We had had defibrillator training during a first aid day at work but had never used one in an emergency.

“The machine actually tells you what to do. The patient was breathing but unconscious and we went through the procedure, helped by the ambulance service on the phone, who said an ambulance and a helicopter were was on their way.

“We worked on the patient for about 20 minutes before help arrived and he was wheeled on a stretcher to the helicopter.”

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