A MAN who said he would have died if not for the prompt emergency treatment he received after a heart attack paid a thank you visit to Cowes RNLI lifeboat station.

Jack Cameron-Wallace, who was accompanied on the visit by his wife, Marie-Anne, had been working as assistant harbour master at Newtown last June when he collapsed with a heart attack in his boat and hit his head.

Initially treated by medically trained staff who just happened to be on a nearby yacht, Jack then received urgent resuscitation procedures on the yacht from a paramedic who was winched down from a Coastguard helicopter.

The lifeboat then conveyed the man out of the Newtown estuary to be winched into the helicopter and taken to Queen Alexandra Hospital in Portsmouth.

Anne-Marie told lifeboat members at the Cowes station that her husband, who spent two weeks in Queen Alexandra, owes his life to all those who so quickly and expertly came to his aid.

The couple presented two tins of luxury biscuits for the crew, a cheque for the RNLI and a bottle of fizz to be auctioned for funds.

Lifeboat operations manager, Mark Southwell, said: "It was lovely to see Jack was on the mend and it was such a kind gesture to come and visit us."

Helm of the lifeboat on the call, Mark Harker, said: "It makes all our efforts so worthwhile when we learned at first hand of such an excellent outcome."

Jack said they had already visited those manning the yacht and would soon be visiting the helicopter crew at Lee-on-Solent.