TWO off-duty firefighters from Burnham have been praised for jumping into action to bring a collapsed jogger back to life.

The 36-year-old man, who has not been named, was running along Huntspill Road near Highbridge on Thursday when he collapsed and his heart stopped beating.

But off-duty retained firefighter Steven Pike saw the man fall to the ground, rushed over and began CPR. He was joined by a second firefighter, Rob Davey who happened to be nearby.

They called an ambulance and continued to massage the man’s heart and use CPR until a paramedic arrived.

A fire crew from Burnham, returning from dealing with a flooding incident, saw what was happening and stopped to assist.

Burnham watch manager Richard Solomon told the Weekly News: “We don’t know exactly what happened; whether he suffered a cardiac arrest or if it was something else but he was showing no signs of life.

“It was a real stroke of luck that all those people were in the right place at the right time, as it can be a lot of work to revive someone and the paramedic was on his own. A defibrillator was used by the ambulance and that brought him back to life.”

The jogger was taken to a high dependency unit at Musgrove park Hospital in Taunton. He is now out of the unit and is said to be responding well to treatment.

Mr Solomon said: “You have about three minutes to bring someone back before their brain is starved of oxygen.

“Before using a defibrillator, the team has to ensure there is no pulse or signs of breathing.

“There was neither – but they managed to bring him back and he was transported in an ambulance, unconscious. But is talking now.

“If no one had been there at the time, and without the quick, professional action of the firefighters, he would be dead.”

The family of the jogger, who lives in Huntspill Road, has arranged to meet the firefighters who saved his life to thank them.

Next week the fire service is to get defibrillators on its vehicles – something for which it has been campaigning for years.

Mr Solomon said: “This situation is a classic example of why it is so vital that we have this life saving equipment on hand when needed.”