A warehouse worker from Kilwinning who saved a colleague's life with 11 minutes of CPR has been highly commended as a First Aid Hero.

Mark Hamilton was honoured for his quick thinking at the Scottish First Aid Awards ceremony held in Glasgow last Friday.

Last summer, Mark was at work when colleague Mihai Nagy collapsed whilst loading a van at a furniture warehouse in Moorfield.

While other colleagues were calling an ambulance, Mark was able to use his first aid skills to deliver CPR on Mihai for more than 10 minutes until the ambulance arrived. 

Mihai was taken to Crosshouse Hospital where he received care in resus before being transferred to ICU.

A lucky turn meant Mark’s partner was one of the nurses caring for Mihai in hospital.

It was recognised that Mark’s actions provided the vital time necessary to give Mihai the greatest chance of survival and recovery.

Mark, Mihai and their partners attended the awards ceremony together last Friday evening, where he received a 'highly commended' award for his actions.

Mark said: “When I think back to last summer, all I could think about in that moment was saving my colleague's life. I guess my fight or flight activated and I sprang into action.

"I am honoured to have been recognised as a First Aid hero at the St Andrews First Aid Awards.

"This event showcases the amazing people who chose to learn first aid skills and whose intervention has made a real difference to people's lives."

Stuart Callison, chief executive of St Andrew’s First Aid, said: “We could not leave Mark’s act of determination, patience, and courage unnoticed, so we are proud to have presented him with this highly commended award.

"Those 11 minutes changed his colleague's life and it’s great to have Mark with us tonight to celebrate his efforts.” 

More than 350 people attended the St Andrew’s First Aid Scottish First Aid Awards which were held at the Radisson Blu hotel in Glasgow. The night was hosted by Gina McKee from Go Radio with entertainment from the Motown Brothers.

Over 60 nominations across nine categories were received this year, each one highlighting an exceptional example of first aid intervention, skill, or sharing best practice.