REPRESENTATIVES of international police forces watched as York officers saved a man’s life.

Sergeant Martin Metcalfe, of Clifton Safer Neighbourhood Police team, was driving the international delegates on a tour of York when he spotted a man lying on the pavement on Walmgate.

He stopped the tour and performed CPR on the man before calling for paramedics.

Sgt Metcalfe said: “When I got to the man his pulse was very weak and he was not breathing. I cleared his airways and put him in the recovery position once he started breathing again. The man had no identification, and was probably in his 40s or 50s.” A paramedic arrived on a bike within minutes of being called, and used defibrillators to revive the man, while Sgt Metcalfe and his team cordoned off the scene.

“We blocked the road and stopped traffic, as the incident may have been drink or drugs related, and had to be treated as a crime scene,” said Sgt Metcalfe.

“Once we knew he would survive the ambulance ride to York Hospital we reopened the road and created a perimeter around the location he was found in.”

Lieutenant Colonel Mohammed Ahmed, from Sudan Police, was taking the tour with Sgt Metcalfe, and was impressed with the quick thinking and reaction times of the local officers.

He said: “The bike arrived within two or three minutes, and the ambulance shortly after that. We are really amazed by the relationships and the involvement with the community shown by North Yorkshire Police.”

“We have found that many things here are similar to our ways, but we do not have an ambulance that can be called in such a short time. To us their work is perfect, we are learning a lot”, he said.

The man was taken to York Hospital. A hospital spokesman was unable to give his condition last night.