THREE quick-thinking passers-by were today hailed as heroes for saving a man's life with emergency first aid as he lay on the pavement.

In an amazing stroke of luck for the sick patient, all three people who came to his rescue were health workers.

Shoppers watched in shock as the victim collapsed in the street outside York Theatre Royal after a heart attack. Onlookers quickly called paramedics - but three passers-by stopped and gave the stricken man resuscitation.

Paramedic Andy Church, who arrived on the scene by bicycle minutes later followed by an emergency crew, said this rapid action saved a life. He called for the trio to be given awards for their brave efforts.

"If it wasn't for them, he'd be dead," he said. "It was outstanding first aid."

The paramedic said the trio took turns giving the man heart massage and mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, which stimulated vital oxygen to his brain.

One of the life-savers, New Zealander Josie Bennett, works in intensive care at York Hospital.

She said the man was "incredibly lucky" a nurse was walking past when he collapsed.

"I've been a nurse for nearly 20 years, but it's the first time I've come across that in the community," she said. "I'm used to dealing with it - but not on the street.

"It was my good deed for the day and it's nice to be able to do something for someone."

Josie, 45, was on her way to the post office when she first spotted the man lying on his side.

"At first glance I thought he had been having a seizure," she said. "Then I looked more closely and saw he was looking very blue.

"He had stopped breathing so I turned him on his back and did cardiac massage."

Paramedics arrived after about ten minutes and gave the patient a shock and put his heart back into a normal rhythm.

Chris Parrott, 41, a physio assistant at the hospital, was another of the heroes.

The Acomb resident spotted Josie performing resuscitation, and as she worked he helped the man breathe.

"I helped," he said. "But if it wasn't for the girl doing resuscitation, I do not think the man would be around. What she did was vital.

"Everything happened so quickly. It was a case of keeping him going until the ambulance arrived. It's just part of the job, but it's nice to get a thank you."

Sue Tuckett, a health care assistant from Strensall, helped Josie give the patient CPR. "The first thing I did was mouth-to-mouth because he was blue. I did it twice, then CPR. The priority is to get someone breathing."

Paramedic Andy Church said the 46-year-old York man was making a good recovery in York Hospital.

Updated: 10:37 Thursday, August 11, 2005