Life-saving honours awarded to pair for bringing car crash victim back from 'brink of death' in Telford

The incident happened at nearly 2pm on the afternoon of March 20 this year.

The man collapsed at the wheel of his car as he was driving in Northfield Street and crashed at speed into a brick wall.

First on the scene was Lynne Richards who assessed the state of the man and immediately began administering cardiac pulmonary resuscitation (CPR).

Next to arrive was PC Lucy Jones who called for a defibrillator, kept back crowds who had gathered and then assisted with the CPR.

When a defibrillator was brought to the scene she attached it to the man and administered shocks with it that brought him back to life.

He was then taken to hospital and went on to survive the ordeal.

Now Ms Richards and PC Jones have both been awarded Resuscitation Certificates by the Royal Humane Society for saving his life.

Society Secretary, Andrew Chapman said: “They were the right people in the right place at the right time and they saved a life. Ms Richards was first to reach the man, realised how critical the situation was and immediately began administering CPR.

"It’s vital in such situations that CPR is administered as soon as possible to give the person the best chance of survival. It was started almost instantly in this case.

“PC Jones then arrived, took control of the crowd of on-lookers, obtained a defibrillator and finally brought the man back to life with it. The two of them did a superb job in difficult conditions and richly deserve the awards they are to receive.

“This is another case which emphasises the value of as many people as possible, not just members of the emergency services, learning how to administer CPR. It can, as it did here, make the difference between life and death.”

The roots of the Royal Humane Society stretch back more than two centuries. The Queen is its patron and its president is Princess Alexandra.

It is the premier national body for honouring bravery in the saving of human life.

It was founded in 1774 by two of the day's eminent medical men, William Hawes and Thomas Cogan. Their primary motive was to promote techniques of resuscitation.

However, as it emerged that numerous people were prepared to put their own lives at risk to save others, the awards scheme evolved, and today a variety of awards are made depending on the bravery involved.

The society also awards non health care professionals who perform a successful resuscitation.

Since it was set up the society has considered over 87,000 cases and made over 200,000 awards.

It is a registered charity which receives no public funding and is dependent on voluntary donations.

It was one of a select number of organisations to receive a donation from the Patron’s fund which was set up to acknowledge work done by organisations of which the Queen is the patron, to mark her 90th birthday.