A RUGBY club chairman has been reunited with the student who helped save his life after he had a cardiac arrest while swimming.

Michael Howard, 64, underwent a triple bypass heart operation after his collapse at Durham Freeman’s Quay swimming pool in September last year.

On Saturday (October 3) he thanked lifeguard Jesse Shallow, 21, who raised the alarm and helped resuscitate him.

The chairman of rugby at Durham City Rugby Club said: “My family and I are enormously grateful. If it wasn’t for their team work wouldn’t be here today.

“I had been back to the pool to thank everyone else involved, but did not got the chance to meet Jesse as she had gone back to university. Thank you is not enough.”

Recalling the incident in September last year, Mr Howard said: "I was doing a training swim and the next thing I knew I was in an ambulance.”

Miss Shallow said: "I was lifeguarding with my friend Chloe Heslop and we were keeping an eye on him, when I noticed he just sort of stopped.

“Somebody at the end of the lane managed to pull him to the side of the deep end.

“I hit the panic button and raised the alarm and Chloe ran down to grab his hand and keep his head out of the water. Our team was on poolside within ten seconds.”

The team pulled Mr Howard out of the water and Miss Shallow, fellow lifeguard Andrew Wright, Shaun McGuiness (who has since been promoted to centre manager) and member of the public took turns to administer CPR.

Miss Shallow said: “We found he wasn’t breathing. He just went so blue. Stephen Shotton brought the oxygen and Paul Arkle brought the defibrillator pads and successfully delivered a shock which restarted his heart.

“It was such a team effort. We are all really proud of how we worked as a team that day and that it was such a successful outcome."

Miss Shallow, 21, who is studying to be a primary school teacher, added: “It was really nice of the rugby club to invite me down this weekend to meet Mr Howard and his family. It was really good to see him looking so fit and well.”

Mr Howard, of Sherburn Village, said: “Jesse asked me if she had broken any of my ribs during CPR. I did have sore ribs afterwards, but it was a small price to pay.”