Heroic Leeds woman on night out uses McDonald's first aid training to save woman's life

Alison Midgley, from Kirkstall, was on a night out with her boyfriend on Saturday and had two or three drinks at a pub in Bramley.

As they were walking down Stanningley Road to the next pub, just before 5.30pm, they heard a commotion behind them and turned to see what was happening.

Alison, 31, said: "I couldn't work out what I was looking at in the dark but I thought - there is something not right there.

"I dropped my handbag and just ran. She was on the floor and the man with her said he thought she was having a fit.

"I knelt down and got to her level, then I realised when she had stopped shaking that she wasn't breathing."

Alison immediately started performing CPR - which she had learnt during compulsory First Aid training with McDonald's - and continued while someone dialled 999.

The mum-of-two added: "She was really struggling to breathe, there were wisps coming out. If it wasn't for my first aid training I wouldn't have known what to do. I can't imagine having to walk away."

Alison performed CPR for about 5 minutes before a rapid responder arrived and told her to continue for another few minutes.

A spokesperson for the Yorkshire Ambulance NHS Trust has confirmed the woman was in cardiac arrest.

When the ambulance finally arrived and paramedics took over, Alison broke down in tears.

She said: "I couldn't carry on anymore, I was running out of energy and crying, shaking and trying not to be sick.

"At the time it's just adrenaline and I wasn't thinking of anything but trying to keep her alive, I didn't care what was going on around me."

Not wanting to stand and stare once the ambulance had arrived, Alison and her boyfriend went to the nearest pub to sit down.

Alison added: "I was crying my eyes out, I couldn't believe that I had the guts to do it, but at the time I didn't think twice.

"It was only really by Tuesday when I spoke to my mum that it sunk in."

Alison tried to find the family on Facebook, eager to know if the woman had survived. She created a post searching for the woman which was shared thousands of times on community Facebook groups.

Eventually, the woman's daughter, Tracy Smith, saw the post and got in touch with Alison - explaining that it was her 63-year-old mum Carole Tate who had collapsed and her heart had stopped.

The pair have been in touch ever since, with Tracy keeping Alison updated on her mum's progress.

Carole was in a critical condition at Leeds General Infirmary, but now appears to be stable and is making signs of progress, and paramedics have told the family that without Alison's efforts she was unlikely to have survived.

Tracy said: "She deserves the recognition, she was amazing. My mum wouldn't be here if it wasn't for her and what she did. I am so glad she was there."

The Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust has confirmed that a rapid response vehicle, an ambulance and a clinical supervisor were rushed to the scene.

A spokesperson said: “It is never easy to be faced with someone in a life-threatening condition but initiating cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) gives the patient the best possible chance of survival.

"Yorkshire Ambulance Service really values the contribution made by members of the public who come across emergencies of this nature."

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