A man who danced with his wife every week for 63 years until he suffered a cardiac arrest is determined to take to the floor once again after his life was saved by bystanders and East Midlands Ambulance Service crews.
Alan Moore, who celebrates his 90th birthday on 17 August, collapsed and went into cardiac arrest in front of his wife Pamela during their weekly dance class at All Saints Church in Huthwaite.
They were with Alan’s daughter, Joanne, who leapt into action, dialling 999 and then starting CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) under instruction from call handler Lisa Corner.
Two other bystanders who work at Huthwaite Children’s Centre – Kelly Ashley and Mark Hoyland – also came to Alan’s aid, supporting Joanne with CPR until our ambulance crews arrived six minutes later.
Ambulance crews Edward Cannon, Rachel Allee, Gillian Woodward and Jason Glover provided advanced medical intervention to save Alan’s life and took him to King’s Mill Hospital, Sutton-in-Ashfield, for further treatment.
Today, Alan and his family returned to the dance hall to meet the whole team of lifesavers who came to his rescue when he went into cardiac arrest.
Joanne Moore explained that she had been watching her parents dancing when she saw her father collapse.
She said: “It was a big shock for everyone. I wasn’t far from him when he went down – his eyes were rolling and his ears were going blue. I just rang 999 and started CPR.”
“Thankfully Mark and Ashley arrived and took over from me, and then the ambulance crews arrived.
“Dad cannot remember anything of the incident, so it was lovely for him to meet his whole team of lifesavers.
“Saying thank you to everyone doesn’t seem like enough, but they really have saved the life of a wonderful man.”
Alan, who was born in Derby, first began dancing when he was just 15 and was invited to the dance hall in Babington Lane. When he met his wife Pamela through a mutual friend, they went dancing for their first date and have been dancing together every week ever since.
Since the incident in November, Alan has been recovering well with the help of physiotherapists and the support of his family and he is determined to dance again.
Alan, a retired civil engineer, said: “I’ve got to get my legs a bit better and get my balance back and then I’ll be back out there on the dancefloor.
“I cannot put into words how grateful I am to everyone – without them I wouldn’t be here today.”
Bravery awards were also presented to Joanne Moore, Kelly Ashley and Mark Hoyland for their quick thinking in providing chest compressions and rescue breaths to Alan when he collapsed.
Mark, Children’s Centre Co-ordinator, said: “You don’t think you will ever use the skills you learn on a first aid course, so it was a shock. But then the adrenaline kicked in and we worked as a team.”
Rachel Allee, Clinical Operations Manager and one of the paramedics who attended Alan said: “This is an excellent example of the importance of knowing CPR – it is a vital skill which we encourage everyone to learn as it can save lives.
“Seconds count during a cardiac arrest so performing effective CPR as soon as possible keeps oxygen flowing around the body, and gives the patient a better chance of survival.”
Guidance on how to do CPR is available on the British Heart Foundation’s website
