'I'm alive thanks to St John volunteers'

The lifelong Wolves fan was at Molineux to see his beloved Wolves take on Crawley. What happened next he can't remember.

"I had been feeling a little bit strange before the match but I went home from work, had my tea, collected my son, also called Colin, and we went to the ground," he said.

Just 13 per cent of adults would be able to act swiftly to take potentially life-saving action in the immediate moments after an accident or an injury.

The Express & Star has teamed up with St John Ambulance an effort to boost the numbers of trained first-aiders.

We are offering our readers 50 per cent off the price of an essential first aid course ran by St John across the Black Country and Staffordshire.

The initiative is part of St John Ambulance's Save A Life September campaign.

Volunteers from the charity are also available to deliver the life-saving demonstration to community groups at no cost.

If you would like to arrange a demonstration for your club or group contact 0121 237 3879 or email west-mids-training@sja.org.uk.

The courses are offered to Express & Star readers for £15 by calling 0121 237 3879 and quoting 'Express & Star'. You can check for course dates in your area by going to www.sja.org.uk

"I started feeling a bit breathless but put it down to rushing around to get to the match."

St John Ambulance first-aiders John Kelly, Sarah Tym and Ena Hodgetts had just arrived at Molineux to start their shift when the call came in that a man had collapsed.

That man was 58-year-old Colin.

Mr Kelly said: "When we got there, it was very clear that his condition was serious. He was blue, unresponsive and after a quick check of his vital signs, I discovered he wasn't breathing.

"We rolled Colin onto his back, and immediately began chest compressions. I opened his airway and used special breathing apparatus to try to get some air into his lungs."

Shortly after the volunteer first-aiders had begun CPR, a steward from the ground came over with one of the stadium's automatic external defibrillators (AED).

Mr Kelly attached the pads to Colin's chest and the defibrillator indicated a shockable rhythm, so a shock was given to restart the heart.

Ms Tym and Mr Kelly continued CPR, and moments later Colin coughed the tube in his airway out and began to breathe on his own.

He was put in the recovery position, and minutes later an ambulance arrived to take him to the nearby New Cross Hospital.

Once the patient had gone to hospital, the first-aiders took care of people in the crowd who had witnessed the incident and were suffering from shock. Later that evening, Mr Westbrook's son let the medical team know that his father was recovering well, and was sitting up and talking in hospital.

Colin senior is in no doubt that had it not been for the swift medical attention he received at the stadium, it could have been a very different story.

With no outward sign that he was ill, Colin, who lives in Newport, Shropshire, is slowly coming to terms with what happened.

He explained: "I have no family history of heart problems, I'm fit and well, I don't drink much and I look after myself so for this to happen was a real shock – there were no indicators."

Colin can remember little of the incident other than what he has been told but was aiming to watch CCTV footage of the incident from the stadium to fill in the missing parts.

"When I got to hospital I had an angiogram which showed three of my arteries were narrowing. The surgeon eventually did a five-way heart bypass."

Life-saving work like that which saved Colin takes place at major events all over the region.

St John Ambulance covered 928 events across Wolverhampton and the Black Country in 2014.

Across the whole West Midlands region it was just over 4,500 events.

Notable events include matches at Wolves, Walsall, the Wolverhampton marathon, Halesowen Athletics and the Aldridge 10k.

But they are also on hand at the Wolverhampton Grand Theatre, Wolverhampton Civic Hall, RAF Cosford, V Festival at Weston Park as well as Vaisakhi, bonfires, Remembrance Day parades and more.

Julie Sadler, regional events and logistics manager for St John Ambulance in the West Midlands said: "Our volunteers are a familiar sight at all kinds of local and regional events across the West Midlands, providing first aid cover week in week out at everything from fetes to festivals.

"We have many different types of volunteers who deliver our event cover from advanced first-aiders, registered nurses, paramedics and doctors to ambulance crews and command and logistics specialists. They are all professionally trained and equipped to deal with everything from minor injuries to life or death situations.

"The first aid cover we provide at public events is essential to ensure the health and well-being of those attending.

"Should an accident or medical emergency occur, our volunteers have the knowledge and resources in place to react quickly and potentially be the difference between a life lost and a life saved, until the emergency services arrive.

"For our volunteers, many of whom have other jobs, working with St John Ambulance out on events is their passion and I am always impressed by their commitment and the pride they take in what they do."

September 11 – Brewood Library, Brewood, 2-4pm

September 11 – Perton Library, Wolverhampton, 10am-noon

September 11 – Burntwood Library, Burntwood,10am-noon

September 12 – Wincanton Family Fun Day, Stafford, 11-4

September 14 – Russells Hall Hospital, Dudley, 12-8pm

September 14 – Codsall Library, Wolverhampton, 2-4pm

September 18 – Stafford Library, 1-3pm

September 19 – Amerton Farm, Stafford, 9-4pm

September 20 – Lichfield Market, Lichfield, 10-4pm

September 21, Queen Square, Wolverhampton, 9-5pm

September 25 – Churchill Shopping Centre, Dudley, 9am-5pm (Ian Austin MP 12.30-1pm)

September 26 – Saddler's Centre,Walsall, 8am-6pm

September 29 – Merry Hill, Mummy Morning, Brierley Hill, 10am-noon

September 29 – Walsall Manor hospital (atrium), 10am-6pm

September 30 – Wharf Street, Wolverhampton, open day, 7.30pm.