Charity event runner helps to save man’s life after heart attack
Dressed as a knight, complete with a red cape and plastic sword, Donkin noticed the man was agonal breathing, a sign of severe distress
Michael Donkin (left) used his CPR experience, along with Sergio Petrucci (center) and Lisa Loftus (right) to safe the man’s life.(CREDIT: Red Sky Foundation)
A charity event runner recounted his dramatic effort to save a man's life during the Great North 10k in Newcastle. Michael Donkin, trained in CPR, sprang into action when he saw a man collapsed by the roadside.
Donkin, along with Sergio Petrucci, founder of the Red Sky Foundation, which focuses on cardiac care, quickly intervened. "The care and help he got very quickly couldn't have been more textbook, even if you planned it in advance," Donkin remarked.
They administered the first of three defibrillator shocks before an ambulance arrived to transport the man to the hospital, where he continues to recover.
Donkin explained it was pure chance he was in a position to help during Sunday’s event. "I was meant to be running in the first wave but ended up in the last wave due to a series of events," he said. "We were a couple of minutes into the run when a gentleman collapsed beside us."
Dressed as a knight, complete with a red cape and plastic sword, Donkin noticed the man was agonal breathing, a sign of severe distress where someone gasps for air. Recognizing the urgency, he knew he had to step in immediately.
"It became evident quickly that we needed to perform CPR, and luckily Sergio was just up the road with a defibrillator," Donkin added. Petrucci, from Sunderland, always carries a defibrillator, though this was his first time using it. "We've been placing defibrillators in public spaces to give people the best chance of survival during cardiac arrest," Petrucci said.
Donkin and Petrucci were soon joined by student nurse Lisa Loftus, who also stopped to assist. "As I was starting CPR, another runner, a woman finishing her nursing degree, stopped to help," Donkin added.
Petrucci described the scene as a "fairy tale ending." "He was dressed as a knight in shining armor, while Lisa had the hair of a unicorn, and the defibrillator was in my hand ready to go!"
This swift and coordinated response exemplifies the importance of CPR training and the availability of defibrillators in public spaces.
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