Football Fan Meets Volunteer Paramedic Who Saved His Life

Bob Dewane's heart stopped beating at the top of a flight of stairs at Fratton Station in September, moments after he left a Portsmouth football match. Another fan spotted Sarah Taylor in her St John Ambulance uniform and rushed her to help.

Sarah had just arrived on a train from Guildford to meet her partner and sons after the game. Earlier that day, she'd been teaching CPR as part of Save a Life September, a campaign encouraging everyone to learn basic life-saving skills.

She found Bob unconscious and not breathing. Without hesitation, she rolled him over and started chest compressions, continuing until the ambulance crew arrived.

"I'm told that I snuffed it for 10 minutes and they brought me back," Bob said with characteristic humor when the two finally met at his home. He joked that he'd often said watching Portsmouth play might be the death of him, and this time it nearly was.

Bob's daughter Amy had desperately tried to find the woman who saved her father, tracing other helpers on social media but coming up empty. BBC Radio Solent tracked Sarah down and arranged the emotional reunion.

Why This Inspires

Sarah represents something powerful about everyday heroism. She wasn't on duty that day, yet she was prepared when it mattered most.

Most volunteer first responders never learn what happens to the people they help. They perform CPR, watch ambulances drive away, and wonder if their efforts made a difference.

For Sarah, this reunion answered that question. "Normally we deal with a patient, they go off to hospital and we never find out what happens next," she said. "I'm so glad that it was a positive outcome and that you're still here."

Bob's wife Jackie called seeing her husband in hospital "the most horrific sight" she'd ever witnessed. After a triple bypass operation and weeks of recovery, Bob pulled through. The couple even celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary in the hospital.

When they finally met, Jackie handed Sarah a bouquet of flowers and hugged her tightly. "I can't express how wonderful she is," Jackie said.

Bob's recovery shows why learning CPR matters. Someone nearby knew what to do when seconds counted, and a family didn't lose a husband, father, and grandfather that day.