Grandad returns to Cornwall to thank lifeguards after cardiac arrest during surf lesson
65-year-old David Smith was with his grandchildren at Holywell Bay when he collapsed
Last updated 2nd Sep 2021
A grandad has visited lifeguards in Cornwall, a year after they helped save his life.
David Smith suffered a cardiac arrest during a surf lesson at Holywell Bay near Newquay.
The 65-year-old was with his grandchildren when he collapsed in August 2020.
The RNLI team responded immediately, giving him CPR and two shocks from a defibrillator.
Wife Angie says without their help and support, her husband would not be alive today.
David's Story
On Wednesday 19 August 2020, David was taking part in a surf lesson with his grandchildren when he suddenly collapsed to the ground.
Surf instructor Lee Griffin, who is also an RNLI lifeguard, immediately responded and radioed the lifeguard hut to get the defibrillator.
Mike Gough, an off-duty paramedic, was out in the water surfing at the time and came out to help.
RNLI lifeguards Adam Taylor and James Kirton along with Lee, Mike and fellow surf instructor Jay Longman began CPR on David, who was suffering from a cardiac arrest.
Adam said: "We responded as fast as we could and were able to deliver two shocks of the defibrillator within five minutes of David collapsing. Jay, Lee, Mike and myself are also members of our local surf lifesaving club and between us all we were able to get him back, which is just amazing".
David had regained some consciousness but was still in a critical condition. Cornwall Air Ambulance arrived on scene and took David to the Royal Cornwall Hospital where he was treated.
A year after the incident and having to recover from major heart surgery, he still wanted to revisit the place where it all happened.
He said: "I had to go and see the people that saved my life. It was very emotional being back there, but they made us feel so welcome. At the time I didn’t know what to say to be honest, but we chatted through what happened that day. I just knew I really wanted to meet them face to face and thank them".
Wife Angie, who was on the beach at the time of the incident and joined him to revisit Holywell Bay said: "We just can’t do or say enough to thank all of those guys that were there that day and helped David. If it wasn’t for them he wouldn’t be here today and we would’ve been coming home without him. We can’t be grateful enough".
Adam, who was lifeguarding on Holywell the day David returned says: "It was great to see David and chat to him, helping him piece together what happened.
He said: "I’ve been doing this job for 17 years and I became a lifeguard because I want to help people. What happened to David is luckily not something we deal with every day, but as lifeguards we are professionally trained in casualty care and are able to respond to an incident on the beach in a matter of minutes. It was an amazing team effort of everyone involved".
Martyn Ward, RNLI Lifeguard Supervisor, says: "We recommend that when trying a new sport like surfing for the first time, you should always go for a lesson with a trained instructor and try and make sure it’s at a lifeguarded beach.
"Surfing is a physically demanding sport with a certain level of risk, by coming to a lifeguarded beach and following safety advice, you are giving yourself the best chance of staying safe.
"Without the quick response of everyone involved this could have been a very different outcome.
"By coming to a lifeguarded beach David was able to go back home to his family and we are delighted he is doing well".
More information on how to stay safe at the beach whilst surfing can be found on the RNLI's website.