Rival darts players save man's life during Padiham match (From Lancashire Telegraph)

Rival darts players save man's life during Padiham match

9:00pm Wednesday 3rd March 2010 in

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RIVAL darts players who abandoned their arrows and raced to the rescue of a man having a heart attack are set to receive life-saving awards.

Derek Tranmer was preparing to take aim during a match between Burnley Conservative Club and Molly Rigby’s, when the drama unfolded at the Mill Street, Padiham, club.

The 68-year-old, of Talbot Street, Burnley, who was turning out for the Conservatives, turned pale and collapsed.

Team-mate John Kostilek, 44, and Molly Rigby’s captain Mich-ael Whittaker, 45, did not waste any time, as an ambulance was called.

John checked for a pulse and laid Derek out in the recovery position, starting chest compressions.Meanwhile Michael, a former retained firefighter and rescue diver, started giving mouth-to-mouth resuscitation to the Derek, who regained consciousness.

Paramedics eventually arrived and took over, whisking Derek away for treatment at Royal Blackburn Hospital.

John, who works as a contract manager for security firm Mitie, impressed his boss Nigel Davies so much that he nominated the pair for a Royal Humane Society commendation. And now the charity has announced it is set to present the pair with certificates.

Michael, of The Shortlands, Padiham, now an electrical engineer for United Utilities, said: “You just don’t think about it at the time but afterwards I felt myself shaking.”

John, of Stonyhurst Avenue, Burnley, added: “Derek had had a funny turn before and we thought this was what was happening at first. But I knew it was a bit more serious than that.”

Derek is now awaiting a triple heart bypass and is recovering at home following the incident last October.