A Malmesbury man has paid tribute to the firefighters who saved his life after an he collapsed playing skittles

Ray Gilson, 75, collapsed and hit his head on a pool table in the Malmesbury FC clubhouse on November 7.

Luckily a fire crew were carrying out their weekly drill night in Malmesbury Fire Station near the clubhouse, and six firefighters came to Mr Gilson’s aid when a member of the public ran to the station for help.

They discovered Mr Gilson unresponsive and no longer breathing but were able to restart his heart and bring him round using CPR and a defibrillator.

Mr Gilson, who has made a good recovery after spending 10 days at Bristol Heart Institute, said: “The fire service saved my life. I know how lucky I was that they were at the station that evening doing training. I wouldn’t have been here if they weren’t there that night.”

Jim Weston, who manages Wiltshire’s fire stations, added: “I am extremely proud of the team at Malmesbury for their professionalism and skill at this incident, which resulted in a life being saved.”

Mr Gilson visited the station on Monday, December 19 to thank those who saved his life, including watch manager Chris Harvey, crew manager Jamie Johnstone and firefighters Bret Gardiner, Alex Hughes, Neil Risby and Jae Wright.