A MAN in his 40s who collapsed in fields near York was taken to hospital with a suspected cardiac arrest after a group of walkers had battled to save his life.

The incident happened at about 4pm on Bank Holiday Monday in the fields under the A64 close to Bishopthorpe. Both the Yorkshire Air Ambulance and a road ambulance were called to the scene.

A spokeswoman for Yorkshire Air Ambulance said: "The patient, a man in his forties, suffered a cardiac arrest and was taken by road ambulance to hospital and one of our paramedics went with him."

A young man has told how he and a group of friends battled to save the man’s life while they waited for the ambulance to arrive.

He said: “We were going for a walk along the riverside when one of my friends saw him collapse underneath the A64 bridge.

“My friend called 999 and it was clear he was struggling with breathing so we began chest compressions and carried on for 19 minutes until the air ambulance arrived at pretty much the same time as the road ambulance.

“We asked to leave by the paramedics because of the coronavirus risks.

“We would like to know how he is, and so if relatives of the man could let us know via The Press we would be grateful.”

*If relatives of the man would like to get in touch, so we can pass on news of his condition to his rescuers, please email mike.laycock@thepress.co.uk or call 07702 899243.