Man thanks life-saving rescuers after saw injury

Joe Hughes as taken to University Hospital Coventry and Warwickshire in March by the Air Ambulance Service

An ex-Royal Engineer said he was lucky to be alive after his neighbours rushed to his aid when he severed an artery, nine tendons and two nerves in his right hand.

Joe Hough, 64, from Pattishall, Northamptonshire, was working on his daughter's campervan when he sliced through his ulna bone with an electric circular handsaw.

He said about six neighbours all rushed to help after they heard him shouting.

One called 999 and he was swiftly taken by The Air Ambulance Service to Coventry hospital in 11 minutes, which he believed saved his hand. To say thank you, he hopes to raise the cost of his flight by undertaking a charity challenge next year.

Joe Hough visited The Air Ambulance Service's base in the summer with his wife Muriel (third from right) and his two daughters, Daisie (middle) and Ellie, along with their boyfriends

The husband and father of two said he realised the accident, on 20 March, was serious when he saw the blood.

He said his "lovely" neighbours all responded so quickly and then made a makeshift tourniquet from a belt, to slow the bleeding down.

"They then took it in turns to keep the pressure on," he said.

"It saved my life. We had about one to four minutes to stop the bleeding, but without the air ambulance it would have been a lot worse.

"They kept me alive and got me to hospital in the shortest amount of time.

"I can't thank them [all] enough for what they did."

He said he could only remember getting into the helicopter and then waking up after seven-and-a-half hours of surgery.

The retired Army veteran said he was now on the mend, after contracting a bone marrow infection in September, and he hoped to return to his job as a lorry driver in early 2026.

Mr Hough said you never know when you might need the help of the emergency services, so he wanted to pay them back

His next adventure will be to take part in an Ultra Challenge on the Isle of Wight with his family next spring, to raise funds for the air ambulance charity.

They are all set to walk a lap of the island, which is about 106 (171km) miles, over two days.

"As an ex-military man I've done the Nijmegen Four Days March in The Netherlands, but this will be quite the challenge as I'm a lot older. I am sure my daughters, Daisie and Ellie, will be fine.

"The cost of my rescue flight was about £2,000, so we want to raise £2,000 so I can say I've paid for my bit," he added.