STAFF at a Forest Heath District Council swimming pool have saved the life of a customer who got into difficulties in the water.
A swimmer in the pool suddenly sank to the bottom of the water. There was an immediate response from Newmarket Swimming Pool lifeguards David Prime and Nathan Burgess. David dived in, grabbed hold of Mr Westwood and supported him at the side of the pool. At that stage Mr Westwood appeared not be breathing. Helped by Nathan, who had called the emergency services, David started to resuscitate Mr Westwood and had given him three breaths before he came round.
Both Nathan and David feel that they were "just doing our job".
The emergency services spent around 20 minutes working on Mr Westwood at the poolside before taking him to hospital. Pool staff heard later that day that Mr Westwood was making a good recovery.
Tony Bass, Chief Executive (Designate) of Anglia Community Leisure which manages the pool in partnership with Forest Heath District Council, praised the staff for their calm and prompt reaction.
"Our staff are highly qualified and trained to deal with such incidents which, thank goodness, are very rare. We are immensely proud of the staff concerned who are reluctant heroes."