Toowoomba man Allen Longridge survives third heart attack at City Golf Club after nursing students use AED for Qld Ambulance services arrive

A Queensland man has cheated death for a third time after a pair of nursing students saved his life when he had a massive heart attack inside a golf club. Listen to the incredible triple-0 call here:

When Allen Longridge collapsed in the pro shop of the Toowoomba City Golf Club two weeks ago, he didn’t fear dying.

After all, he’s died twice before.

“I was looking at that bunch of golf balls right there, then I went to step forward and that’s it — it was like I was knocked unconscious,” the 67-year-old Highfields man said.

Mr Longridge could lay claim to being Toowoomba’s luckiest man, after his life was saved by two nursing students following a massive heart attack on July 23.

The trio reunited on Tuesday with Queensland Ambulance Service officers Peter Baron and Troy Haley, who were among several paramedics that attended the critical incident that day.

‘He was going to die’: How nursing students saved Allen’s life

Highfields man Allen Longridge, who suffered a massive heart attack at the Toowoomba City Golf Club and nearly died, has reunited with nursing students Isaac Leach and Jack Ryan two weeks after they saved his life.

Mr Longridge passed out while waiting in line at the pro shop, right next to 20-year-old Isaac Leach who started immediately performing first aid.

Ironically, Mr Leach should have already been teeing off with his friend Jack Ryan on the course but returned to the pro shop to get an energy drink.

“I’d finished work at 3am, I was really tired so I went in to go and get an energy drink real quick,” he said.

“I came down here (to the pro shop), grabbed an energy drink and I lined up and then I saw a man collapse under the counter.”

Mr Leach and Mr Ryan discovered quickly Mr Longridge had no pulse, was not breathing and had started turning purple and blue.

“I grabbed his hand and he wasn’t squeezing it – I put him in the recovery position and he still wasn’t reacting, checked his pulse and there was (none),” Mr Leach said.

“I told Chris (Britnell, pro shop manager) to grab the defibrillator and told everyone to step aside.

“Jack came in, and then (Allen’s face) was going blue, he looked lifeless.

“I looked up and the pro shop was packed, I could feel everyone was in shock – no one was speaking except for Jack and I.

“I thought he was honestly going to die.”

While Mr Britnell rung triple-0 and spoke with the QAS, the pair sprung into action and prepared Mr Longridge for immediate defibrillation using the nearby AED owned by the golf club.

“We just used it once, then we assessed him again, put him in the recovery position and I was about to start CPR but then he started breathing again,” he said.

“For a moment, I saw his eyes come back and then he went out.

“Once his heart had started, we couldn’t continue CPR, we just had to monitor.”

While it only took paramedics 6.5 minutes to get to the scene, QAS officer-in-charge Peter Baron said the actions of Mr Leach and Mr Ryan saved Mr Longridge’s life.

Reuniting for the first time since Allen Longridge (centre) had a major heart attack on July 23, 2024 is (from left) QAS office-in-charge Troy Haley, QAS call taker Feven Berhanu, QAS officer-in-charge Peter Baron, Allen and nursing students Isaac Leach and Jack Ryan.

“I actually can’t stand here and take credit for it, from the Queensland Ambulance Service, it was the guys that used the AED that made this outcome possible,” he said.

“I do honestly believe that this outcome is purely because of these two gentlemen using the AED and knowing CPR and things like that.

“We will always get an ambulance to a cardiac arrest, but time matters so early defibrillation is what saves lives.”

QAS Toowoomba call operator Feven Berhanu said it was rare to see a heart attack patient breathing normally before paramedics arrived.

“For the patient to already be resuscitated before they arrived was extraordinary and it’s a testament to them having and using the AED,” she said.

Toowoomba nursing students Isaac Leach (left) and Jack Ryan talk about how they saved Highfields man Allen Longridge's life at the City Golf Club, after he had a massive heart attack at the pro shop.

Mr Leach and Mr Ryan said the incident had reaffirmed their chosen career paths in nursing.

“My initial objective was to go into nursing and then become a paramedic — I came out of this realising this was what I wanted to do,” Mr Leach said.

Mr Longridge was discharged from Toowoomba Hospital after a few days, and is waiting to have a cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) installed.

Man describes the feeling of dying

Incredibly, the pro shop incident was Mr Longridge’s third near-death experience, after suffering heart attacks twice before over the past 12 years.

While working as a postie in 2012, he blacked out on his bike and woke up slumped over the handlebars.

Mr Longridge struggled to describe how felt just seconds before he went unconscious.

“I felt like I was moving but I didn’t have any legs; I couldn’t see any part of my body and yet, I felt like I could look around,” he said.

“Seven minutes later, I got a massive pain and I just opened my eyes and I was back again.

“I continued the mail run, then called my employer that I had a suspected heart attack, I went and saw the doctor and he said yes, so that was the first one.”

Highfields man Allen Longridge, who suffered a massive heart attack at the Toowoomba City Golf Club and nearly died, has reunited with nursing students Isaac Leach and Jack Ryan two weeks after they saved his life.

Mr Longridge’s second dance with death was in 2017 while he was getting into his car in the parking lot of a local shopping centre.

“I blanked out again, and woke up about four or five minutes later, and then I was up and walking again,” he said.

In all cases, he said incredible circumstances had occurred to prevent him from serious injury or death why he was passed out.

“I can’t figure out any of my experiences — every single time, something has happened so (I didn’t die),” Mr Longridge said.

“(On the bike) I could have been riding on the road, gone head on into traffic, but I just pulled up on the footpath and stopped.

“In the second incident, I could have been going down the right and coming to the school zone and someone walked out of the road with the stop sign, and I die and just go straight through them.

“Not meant to die, am I?”

Ambos urge businesses, community groups to buy AEDs

Queensland Ambulance Service Toowoomba officer-in-charge Peter Baron (left) wants to see more businesses and sporting clubs holding automated external defibrillators (AEDs) after the deployment of one saved Allen Longridge's life at the City Golf Club.

While the quick actions of Mr Leach and Mr Ryan were essential, the Queensland Ambulance Service said Mr Longridge would likely not have survived without a jolt from a defibrillator (AED).

In an ironic twist, QAS officer-in-charge and attending paramedics Peter Baron said he and colleague Troy Haley had met with the Toowoomba City Golf Club two years ago to urge it to buy AEDs.

“Troy and I actually met with the golf club here, and it was actually about the importance of AEDs and clubs having them in facilities like this,” he said.

“I personally feel that it is relevant that businesses and community clubs should have AEDs within those facilities for this exact reason.

“Groups and businesses should investigate purchasing AEDs and putting them out within the community to assist with saving lives.”

Mr Baron said regular citizens should consider taking first aid courses and learning how to perform CPR, even if their jobs didn’t require them.

“As a community as a whole, for people to learn first aid also think is relevant as well, because if there’s no AED available to people, early CPR also improves survivability,” he said.