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Cyclist's 'huge debt' to life-saving strangers

Heidi Tomlinson & David Spereall
BBC News, Yorkshire
Heidi Tomlinson/BBC Two men shake hands on a rural road. The man on the left is wearing a blue baseball cap, sunglasses and red life jacket, on top of a blue polo shirt. The man on the right is wearing glasses and a navy polo shirt.Heidi Tomlinson/BBC
Richard Breese (left) was among the passers-by who rushed to save Joost Smeele (right) when he collapsed by a canal last month

A cyclist who suffered a cardiac arrest while riding by the side of a canal has thanked the strangers who helped save his life and gave him a "second chance".

Joost Smeele, 61, was riding past the landmark Bingley Five Rise Locks on the Leeds and Liverpool Canal on 2 May when he collapsed.

Passers-by, including volunteer lock-keeper Richard Breese, rushed to his aid and Mr Smeele was given CPR before paramedics arrived to take him to hospital.

Mr Smeele, a retired business analyst and former scout leader from Bingley, said the experience was "very humbling" and he owed those who helped him "a huge debt".

"Their immediate action means I'm as healthy as I am now, otherwise it could have been so different," he said.

Heidi Tomlinson/BBC A man with short grey hair and glasses smiles into the camera. He is wearing a navy polo shirt. The background is blurred, but it is a public place on a sunny day.Heidi Tomlinson/BBC
Mr Smeele said he felt he had been given a "second chance" at life thanks to those who helped him

Following Mr Smeele's collapse, a local cafe owner used a defibrillator in an attempt to resuscitate Mr Smeele, while another Good Samaritan started to perform life-saving CPR.

Meanwhile, Mr Breese said he had been in a boat cleaning the canal when a pedestrian raised the alarm over Mr Smeele's plight.

He said he immediately "went into training mode", having previously learned CPR, and he took over compressions from the other man who had become tired.

"I just dropped the rake we were using to clean out the debris from the canal and ran," Mr Breese said.

"It's the first time I've ever had to do it for real. When I put my hands on his chest and felt he was warm, there was a split-second realisation this was a real person and not a training dummy."

Mr Breese said he felt "a lot of gratification that between us - and it was a team effort - we've managed to save Joost's life, or at least give the first aid treatment before we could successfully pass him onto the paramedics".

Heidi Tomlinson/BBC A picturesque section of a canal, with walkways bridging over the water. The canal is flanked by grass verges and trees on both sides.Heidi Tomlinson/BBC
Mr Smeele was riding past the famous Bingley Five Locks on 2 May when he collapsed

Mr Smeele said he could not remember the incident itself, but said he now felt in good health, having since had two stents fitted to his heart.

"I've a painful rib bone, but that means the CPR was done properly," he said

"Other than that, I feel normal. I just don't have the stamina. I've lost my sense of taste and my sense of smell. They may come back. They're not life-changing."

"I do feel as though I've got a second chance," Mr Smeele added.

"I have an opportunity to make a difference. It's a gift that's been given to me."

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