A 64-year-old man will always be grateful that bin lorry driver Michel Wray was on shift on Friday 20 July – because he is a former nurse who saved his life.
The man had collapsed in the street just as the bin lorry was on its round on Sneinton Dale.
As luck would have it, Michael, who joined the City Council as a bin lorry driver this March, had previously worked for 15 years as a nurse at various hospitals including Derby, Chesterfield and Bassetlaw.
He leapt out of the truck and found that the man didn’t have a pulse and wasn’t breathing.
Michael said: “I shouted my colleagues to get him on his back and call for an ambulance. I cleared his airways using a jaw-lift technique I learnt when I was a nurse.
“I used the facemask in the first aid kit we have in the truck to give him the kiss of life. I did a hard press down on his sternum which seemed to bring him back to consciousness. The ambulance crew took over when they arrived.
“I guess I was the right man to be on shift.”
After his life-saving exploits, Michael got back in the truck and finished his shift.
Portfolio Holder for Energy & Environment, Cllr Sally Longford, said: “I’m so proud to hear what Michael did – it’s absolutely fantastic! Our staff so often go above and beyond their duties, but saving someone’s life is just incredible. It’s great that he had the presence of mind and the necessary training to step in and do what was needed when it mattered most. What a hero!”
[Photo: Nottingham Post]