A man who survived a cardiac arrest and went on to save THREE more lives is backing a London Ambulance Charity campaign to end “defib deserts”

A man who beat the odds to survive a cardiac arrest has gone on to save the lives of at least three other people.

And by backing the new London Heart Starters campaign, Steve Morris will help to save even more.

Analysis by the London Ambulance Service has revealed that dozens of neighbourhoods are ‘defibrillator deserts’ – where there is little or no access to a life saving device.

Steve is now sharing his remarkable story in the hope it will inspire others to support London Heart Starters and fund more defibs for the capital.

Steve was a fit and active 60-year-old when he collapsed while on a treadmill at his gym.

Staff at the gym gave him chest compressions and a shock from a defibrillator, keeping him alive until an ambulance crew arrived.

Steve said: “I was slim and I’d never smoked. I was a regular gym-goer so this was the last thing I expected to happen to me.

“But if this had to happen, I was in the best place. The staff knew how to give effective chest compressions and use a defib, which saved my life. If I had been at home, I would be dead.”

Cardiac arrest is when a person’s heart stops working and stops pumping blood and oxygen around the body. At the moment fewer than one in 10 people survive.

Steve – now 69 – was so grateful to be alive he just wanted to help others and started fundraising to help provide 17 more defibs for the West Sussex town where he now lives.

Two people’s lives have already been saved by one of the new defibs and, even more extraordinarily, Steve has himself given chest compressions and used his own defib to save someone’s life.

He said: “A salesman gave me an old defib he had in his garage and one day I was at home and heard a commotion outside my flat.

“A man was lying on the pavement so I ran down, made sure 999 was called, took over chest compressions and shocked him and he came back to life.

“It was incredibly emotional and actually affected me more than my own cardiac arrest. It really brought it home how close I was to dying.”

As well as backing the London Heart Starters campaign and the sponsored London Life Hike walk that will raise funds for vital defibs, Steve has also joined the project board of London Lifesavers, bringing his expertise and experience to another ambitious campaign.

The London Ambulance Service campaign is aiming to make London a city of lifesavers by organising training in life-saving skills for schools, organisations and communities.

Jessica Burgess, Head of London Ambulance Charity, said: “Steve’s story is incredible and we are grateful to have him backing our London Heart Starters campaign. Hopefully, it encourages more people to support us.

“By joining our mission to place defibrillators in the heart of every community, you will help us save lives.”

London Ambulance Charity is hosting its first sponsored walk later this year to raise money for more defibrillators and is calling on the people of London to take part.

Find out how you can have a fun day out while raising money for our life-saving Heart Starters campaign on our dedicated London Life Hike page.