A 15-year-old boy was called a hero today (Fri) after helping to save a man’s life.

Patrick Higgins, a Honley High School pupil, was on his way home on Thursday afternoon after taking his final mock exam when he saw a heavily pregnant woman out of breath and struggling to run with a defibrillator for her seriously ill father Gerry.

Immediately he took control of the situation and told the almost seven months pregnant Morgan Quirke he would run with it from the end of Market Street to her home, a quarter of a mile away in Armitage Road, Milnsbridge, where her desperate mother Anita was battling to save her husband’s life.

Anita had been told by the 999 operator to try to obtain one to help with Gerry’s respiratory difficulties.

Later paramedics arrived and the 69-year-old retired engineer was taken to Calderdale Royal Infirmary in Halifax where tonight (Friday) medics are fighting to help save his life.

His symptoms include Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, (COPD), Lupus, an autoimmune disease, Septicemia, a serious bloodstream infection, pneumonia and flu.

But in all the confusion and drama, Morgan, 27 and Anita failed to get their hero’s name.

So Morgan, who is expecting her first child, took to the Golcar, Milnsbridge, Longwood, Cowlersley and Scape area community page on Facebook in a bid to track down Patrick, of Leymoor Road, Golcar.

She wrote yesterday (Thurs): “I’m looking for a really helpful young man, on his way home from school today he had seen me running in Milnsbridge with the defibrillator in my hand to get it to my parents’ house for my dad.

“I am nearly seven months pregnant and was struggling for breath and the young man took the defibrillator off me and asked where I was going and set off running to get it to my dad.

“If anybody knows of this young man could you please ask him to contact me. I and my family would like to thank him for all his help and bravery today.

“I was just in such a rush I didn’t manage to get his name. I hope we can all pull together to find him and I hope his parents can read this and see what an amazing and helpful son they have raised.”

Fortunately Patrick’s mum Kay eventually saw the post which attracted a huge amount of interest and realised it was her son and took him on Friday evening back to Armitage Road so Anita and Morgan could thank him properly.

Morgan said: “This woman saw me struggling to open the defibrillator casing. I was shaking and she managed to help me and chucked it at me and I went off running.

“I had only crossed the road but was already really out of breath and waddling more than running at that point. I was just amazed at how brave and how calm Patrick was. He handled the situation like a professional.

“He even came back and checked with me that I was all right and wished my dad all the best. I didn’t realise how far it was. It’s all uphill and about a quarter of a mile.”

Anita, a great grandmother, who is hoping to celebrate her 30th wedding anniversary with Gerry on July 8, said: “It was about 3pm and the operator asked if I could get someone to get a defibrillator so Morgan went to get it.

“When Patrick got to our door he was banging on it like billyho. I was sickened afterwards when things had calmed down and I thought I didn’t even get his name.

“It could have been a matter of life and death. Luckily I didn’t have to use it in the end because the paramedics arrived. But he could have saved someone’s life. He is a real hero.”

Patrick said: “I was just walking home from Lockwood Rail Station and saw Morgan running with the defibrillator and so I asked if she needed any help. She said: ‘You can run faster than me, take it to this address on Armitage Road.’ I’m not the fastest of runners but I try.”

Now teachers at his school are looking at acknowledging his prowess as well as Yorkshire Ambulance Service.

Kay, a mother-of-two, said she and her 49-year-old husband Steve, were both very proud of him. She said: “He was just very matter of fact about it when he told me about it.”