A man who "died" after suffering a heart attack at the wheel says he owes his life to fellow drivers.
Alan Clarke, of New Parks, Leicester, was travelling home when he collapsed at the wheel as his van waited at traffic lights.
The 55-year-old suffered a heart attack and then went into cardiac arrest, which meant his heart stopped beating altogether.
Within seconds, several drivers – including an off-duty doctor and nurse – stopped to help.
They managed to move Alan from his van on to the ground before performing CPR.
It took about 10 minutes for the doctor to get Alan's pulse back and bring him back to life.
Alan, a father of four and grandfather of four, said he wanted to publicly thank everyone who helped him.
"I wouldn't be here today without those people, I really wouldn't," he said. "They didn't just save my life, they saved my family, too."
Alan, a self-employed landscape gardener, was driving home along Groby Road, Leicester, when the drama unfolded on Friday, August 8.
He was visiting a friend, called Albert, and left at about 6pm.
"The last thing I remember is leaving Albert's house," he said. "I don't even remember getting into my van."
Two men, a car driver and a motorcyclist, noticed Alan "slouched" over his steering wheel as they drove past.
They stopped and pulled him out of his van and on to the ground.
By this time, doctor Lloyd Abood, who had just finished a shift at Glenfield Hospital, had also stopped.
Doctor Abood said: "I drove past the van and noticed something wasn't right, so I turned round and went back.
"When I arrived, Alan didn't have a pulse and his heart had stopped beating."
Doctor Abood is a foundation year one doctor, who had just finished the first week of his first job in the medical industry when he came across the incident.
He instantly began performing CPR on Alan, while the other drivers called the emergency services.
"It was my duty of care as a doctor to respond that way," Dr Abood said. "I forgot I was just in the middle of the street – I went into doctor mode."
In the meantime, a nurse who was also driving past had stopped to help. She performed mouth-to-mouth on Alan while Dr Abood carried out chest compressions. An ambulance then arrived.
After about 10 minutes, Doctor Abood, the nurse and paramedics had managed to get his pulse back.
"If we hadn't have been there at that time, it sounds like it could have been a completely different outcome," said Dr Abood.
Alan was rushed to Glenfield Hospital, where he was given a life-saving operation.
His wife, Denise Clarke, 57, said: "I was told to prepare for the worst by the hospital.
"Without those people who helped him, we could've been arranging his funeral today. It really is a miracle."
Alan returned home a week later and is now "back to his old self".
"It's just incredible how everything fell into place," said Denise.
Steve Szalai, 57, who was driving past with his wife, Maggie, was one of the men who helped Alan.
Maggie, 59, said: "The lights went green, but Alan's van didn't move. Steve thought it was very strange.
"We pulled up and ran over to him.
"When we got there, I thought he was dead.
"It's nice to think we've saved somebody's life."
Alan and Denise have met Maggie and Steve, as well as Dr Abood, to say thanks.
However, they are still searching for the nurse and motorcyclist who also helped at the scene.
"I'm so grateful to those who stopped," said Alan. "I want to speak to them face-to-face and thank them personally.
"I want to shake their hand and say thank you – that's the least I can do compared with what they did."
If you were the nurse or the motorcyclist who helped Alan, contact the Mercury by calling reporter Yasmin Duffin on 0116 222 4262. Or e-mail her at:
yasminduffin@ leicestermercury.co.uk
