An off-duty lifeboatman put his training to good use after a man he was next to collapsed with a heart attack.

Philip Shannon, longest serving crew member at Sennen Cove Lifeboat Station and volunteer deputy launching authority, having previously been second coxswain, was out with a group of friends on Tuesday morning (December 29) when the drama unfolded.

A local man who was next to him suddenly collapsed by his side, suffering a cardiac arrest.

Philip responded immediately, thanks to the casualty care training he has received as part of his RNLI role kicking in.

Philip’s colleagues, volunteer and former coxswain Terry George and mechanic Richard Brown also responded from the lifeboat station, bringing with them the casualty care kit, oxygen, and village defibrillator – but as they arrived Philip had already managed to resuscitate the man using CPR and the casualty was sitting up.

%image('12191763', type='article-full', caption='Sennen Lifeboat's Philip Shannon saved a life off-duty. Picture: Tim Stevens/Sennen RNLI', alt='Sennen Lifeboat's Philip Shannon saved a life off-duty. Picture: Tim Stevens/Sennen RNLI')

Lifesaver Philip Shannon is the longest serving crew member at Sennen Cove Lifeboat Station

He was then taken by air and road ambulance to the Royal Cornwall Hospital in Truro, where the latest update was that he remained in a stable condition.

The man Philip saved has not been identified, but has been described as "well known to many people locally".

Tom Mansell, regional RNLI lifesaving lead, said: "I am so pleased to hear that because of Philip’s actions, the outcome was so positive.

"The gentleman, who is known to many people locally, was very lucky that Philip, with the appropriate lifesaving knowledge, was there to help and to administer that help immediately.

"In such a remote place such as Sennen Cove our volunteer lifeboat crew, who have received casualty care training to a first responder level, are invaluable to the local community and I know Philip is pleased to have been able to use this skill and knowledge to help someone he knows.

"It's lovely to think that a family will be starting the New Year in such a positive way."