Camber pub locals help save collapsed man

A resident has been lauded as a heroine after helping to save a man's life when he had a small heart attack in Camber.
Rother community first responders Sam Carter and Vanessa Rae jpKnV50HFqtqyVODLDmbRother community first responders Sam Carter and Vanessa Rae jpKnV50HFqtqyVODLDmb
Rother community first responders Sam Carter and Vanessa Rae jpKnV50HFqtqyVODLDmb

Mary Pocock was enjoying a conversation with the man in his 50s in the Camber Castle pub when he collapsed into her arms and stopped breathing at around 11.30pm on January 2.

She gave him CPR and put him in the recovery position before the Rother Responders arrived.

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Mary said she was just trying to help her friend and did not consider herself as a heroine.

“It was a bit unexpected when he’s sitting there talking to me and gets pains in his chest, but I just reacted,” she said.

“I just dealt with it – when somebody needs your help, you just help them.

“I’m pleased to be able to help and it was handy that I knew what to do.

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“I didn’t think about it at the time, I just thought about saving my friend.”

She praised the responders, Vanessa Rae and Sam Carter, for their help and for reacting so quickly to the call.

They used their equipment to help the man before the two South East Coast Ambulance Service (SECAmb) crews arrived and took him to the Conquest Hospital.

Rye Neighbourhood Policing Team thanked Mary and the responders on Facebook.

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“We’ve been made aware of some fantastic life saving in Camber last night,” the post said.

“If it wasn’t for Mary or for the fact that Camber has the excellent staff from the Rother Responders the situation could have so different.

“We understand that the male in question was taken to the Conquest hospital and should make a full recovery.

“Well done and a massive thank you to all involved from all of us at Rye Neighbourhood Policing Team.”

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A SECAmb spokesman thanked the people in the pub prior to their arrival and the responders for doing everything they could and giving him the very best chance of survival.

Mary was a little concerned about the time it took for the ambulance to arrive, and worried about how much worse it could have been had it been peak season.

She said the road into Camber gets so busier during the summer that it would be a nightmare for ambulances to get through.

Mary also called for more defibrillators to be made available in Camber as the publicly-available ones are locked away in the winter.

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