A MAN who fell 25 feet from a tree dragging himself 200 metres to the roadside to flag down help has praised the passers-by who saved his life.

Steve Manning was cutting a bough off a tree in his late brother's garden when the ladder slipped and he plunged to the ground, severely injuring both of his ankles.

Realising he did not have a mobile and there was no one else at the property, the 60-year-old had no option but to haul himself to the edge of the nearby Kings Acre Road in Hereford in an attempt to flag down passing motorists.

Mr Manning said: "I was 25 feet up and I cut this bough off and I fell. I landed on my legs and shattered my left foot in 36 pieces. I am lucky to be alive.

"I had to crawl for 200 metres on my hands and knees to get help. I kept passing out. I got to the main road and I was able to flag a car down."

A doctor stopped to help, as did a builder who wrapped a carpet around Mr Manning, as he was feeling the effects of the freezing cold weather.

Mr Manning, who lives further up Kings Acre Road towards Hereford, said: "If those people hadn't have stopped I would have died. I would have died from loss of blood or hypothermia."

An air ambulance attended and Mr Manning said paramedics had put him on a stretcher to be airlifted but his heart then stopped, and the decision was made to go to Hereford County Hospital.

He said: "We got there and 20 people were all waiting for me - a trauma team. They were fantastic. I was a mess. I didn't know what was going on."

Mr Manning was in hospital for a week following the accident last December.

He said the surgeon said his ankle was one of the worst he had ever seen and doubted if Mr Manning would walk again.

But he said he is recovering slowly and is now able to walk using crutches.

Mr Manning said: "A magnificent team of orthopaedic surgeons, Mr Chandra Rao and Mr Chandramohan, together with the trauma team and nursing staff took great care of me and over several days managed to rebuild my ankle.

"I can’t thank them enough for all they did and are still doing to get my life back together."

Mr Manning, who is married to Debbie and has two children, Sophie and Austin, also thanked Hereford Lions for loaning a mobility scooter to him to help get around.

He would also like to thank the doctor and the builder who stopped to help him. If you were one of these two people please call the Hereford Times on 01432 845883 or email rca@herefordtimes.com.