Air ambulance saved man following emergency in Bridport

Tim Richardson, 58, of Shipton Gorge suffered a heart-related emergency while at Morrisons in Bridport.

After being rushed by a land ambulance to Dorset County Hospital in Dorchester, it was determined that following an MRI, his condition was much more serious and he needed emergency surgery at a specialist unit.

Tim was suffering from an aortic dissection, a serious condition in which a tear occurs in the inner layer of the body's main artery - the aorta - which can often be fatal.

He was subsequently airlifted by the air ambulance to Southampton General Hospital where medics were waiting to take him into theatre.

Tim said: “I originally thought it was a heart attack. We arrived very quickly, and the surgical team were there waiting for me, and they rushed me straight in - The air ambulance crew were just brilliant they were so calming and caring.

“It is literally lifesaving. They saved my life.”

Tim’s partner, Caroline Taylor, also had plenty of praise for the team, adding: “They kept in touch with me the whole way as I had to make my own way to the hospital.”

Now that Tim is on the road to recovery following the incident in March, he has raised funds to give back to Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance.

The couple worked alongside the team at Shipton Gorge Community Café, which is held regularly at the village pub, the New Inn, raising more than £1,500.

Chris Griffiths-Hardman, also of Shipton Gorge, is a volunteer at the café. He said all of the bakers in the village got together, baking a total of 26 cakes.

During the day they served 240 slices of cake and savoury bakes, as well as countless cups of tea at the New Inn – all for the cost of a donation.

Tim used to work at the New Inn and is ‘missed dearly by the team there.’

Chris said: “We do about three or four of these community cafes a year to raise money for good causes.

“The community have all pulled together to support Tim because he is one of our own. It was also really nice to be able to use the pub “

Tim said: “We were overwhelmed with the turnout, when we got here, the pub was absolutely packed out.”

They have also been raising some separate funds for the charity.

Tim and Caroline alongside DSAA volunteers and Community Kitchen volunteers (Image: Hollie Carr)

Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance volunteers, Jan and Ron Bishop, also of Shipton Gorge, accepted the cheque of £1,508.10 on behalf of the lifesaving charity.

They said: “This is wonderful. DSAA is such an important charity which is funded by the public and it is getting more and more expensive to run every year.

Tim Richardson and Caroline Taylor (left) with Jan and Ron Bishop (right) (Image: Hollie Carr)

“We were called nearly 3,000 times last year with every mission costing over £3,000, so we need to raise more than nine million pounds a year – and that’s just for Dorset and Somerset.”