Swimmer’s life saved by quick thinking brothers Matthew and Connor O’Donnell, both members of Liverpool Canoe Club.
On Thursday, August 2, a man in his 50’s was enjoying an open water swim at Pennington Flash when he became unresponsive in the water but 17-year-old Matthew and 18-year-old Conner, who work for water safety control at Leigh and Lowton Sailing Club, sprang into action.
Matthew pulled the man onto his boat and took him back to dry land where the pair began to deliver CPR and mouth-to-mouth. Another swimmer went to the entrance to retrieve the defibrillator.
A total of three shocks were delivered to revive the man and an ambulance was called.
He was taken to Manchester Royal for further treatment and is in a stable condition.
Matthew said: “I noticed that he was unresponsive in the water, so I took him back to land at full power on my boat. I started CPR and mouth to mouth while drying him off then my brother Conner put the defib pads on him and shocked him. The outcome would have been very different if we didn’t have the defibrillator.”
The gentleman remains in Manchester Royal and is in a stable condition.
Since sharing their story, Matthew and Conner have been awarded with a Defibshop Lifesaver Award to recognise their bravery and actions when saving the man’s life.
Defibshop have also donated a new set of electrode pads to ensure the life-saving device continues to be in a ready-for-use condition.
A spokesman for Defibshop added: “We were thrilled to hear that another life had been saved by a defibrillator.
“It’s stories like this that remind us why we do what we do. Quite simply, we save lives.”