Canvey pensioner offers thanks to good Samaritan who stepped in when he gashed his head (From Echo)

Canvey pensioner offers thanks to good Samaritan who stepped in when he gashed his head

4:00pm Friday 19th March 2010 in

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A PENSIONER who cut his head open after a fall has thanked a good Samaritan who helped stem the flow of blood as they waited for an ambulance.

Bill Smyth, 76, was left with five stitches across his forehead following a fall into the path of oncoming traffic in Canvey High Street as he went to get his morning paper.

Bill was helped from the middle of the busy road by a kindly driving instructor, who also tended his wound while they waited for the emergency services.

Dazed by the whole event, the pensioner never learned his helper’s name, and now wants to thank him for his considerate actions.

Bill, of High Street, Canvey, said: “I remember the driving instructor helping me from the road, and he also used one of his white shirts to stop the flow of blood. It wasn’t until I was in the back of the ambulance I fully regained my senses, so I never got his name.

“It was such a kind thing to do. I just wanted to say thank you.”

The accident happened at about 8am on Monday, March 8, as Bill crossed the High Street near Essex Coachworks. Bill recalls: “I just remember walking and suddenly I fell forwards.

“One car missed me by a matter of inches. It had to swerve round me, but the driver didn’t stop. I was crawling to the side of the road when the driving instructor stopped and helped me.”

Bill was taken to Southend Hospital, but was allowed home later the same day.

He also thanked a woman from nearby Tyler Law solicitors, who waited with him too.

He added: “I’ve been so shocked by the whole thing. It’s only now I realise how lucky I was. If it hadn’t been for the kind help of others, I’d have been in a much worse state. So I wanted to thank them.”