A LIFESAVING machine has been installed at Abingdon Lock a year after a hypothermic man was rescued from the river.

The town's lock claims to be the first along the entire River Thames to accommodate a defibrillator - the same clever piece of kit that saved a man's life last spring after his boat capsized.

Lock keeper Richard Hawkins, who was hailed a hero after helping to revive the unconscious man, said the near-fatal incident triggered a fundraising drive for the defibrillator.

He said: "It was fortunate last time that an ambulance was nearby; they used a defibrillator on him. That was the main impetus for this - if they had not got down here [as quickly], he probably would not have survived."

The £2,000 defibrillator was funded by dedicated support group Friends of Abingdon Lock and mounted on the lock keeper's hut last week: almost a year to the day since the rescue on April 29 last year.

Mr Hawkins remembered how he heard shouting at the lock that evening by three members of a stag party, whose rowing boat had flipped upside down and plunged them into the icy water.

He hauled two of them out with rope and gave the other CPR, after he flopped out onto the riverbank and fell into cardiac arrest.

Paramedics then rushed to his side with the defibrillator, which can restart a stopped heart by shocking the chest with electric currents.

Mr Hawkins, who lives next to the lock near Abbey Meadows, said he had probably pulled about half a dozen people from the river in Abingdon over the years.

The 29-year-old said: "We are particularly proud of the defibrillator as it's the first lock on the River Thames to have one. Hopefully this will spark a bit of movement [elsewhere]. I hope we will never have to use it but it's reassuring to know it's there in the worst case."

He said the Environment Agency, which manages the lock along with the 44 others along the Thames, is now keen to install defibrillators elsewhere on the river.

A spokesperson for the agency said although it had not found a need to install defibrillators at its locks, it was giving the idea 'serious consideration'.

Oxfordshire's so-called 'Mr Defib' Dick Tracey, who has campaigned tirelessly for more of the machines in Oxfordshire, said it was an 'excellent idea' to have one at the lock.

Mr Tracey, who will retire at the end of the month as South Central Ambulance Service's divisional commander, said: "Rich rang me about six months ago to say they were considering getting a defib at the lock - I was so pleased. Not least because in the summer months people use that walkway to enjoy the views, but also because it would take more time to get a defib to that area [due to access]. I think it's a brilliant idea to get more of them along the River Thames."

Mr Tracey worked with the Herald's sister paper the Oxford Mail in 2014 during a campaign to get more defibrillators in the county.

Abingdon is already home to several of the machines, including outside Wildwood and at Abingdon Rugby Club - which are among seven in the town funded by Abingdon Lions Club.

Residents in nearby Marcham have also welcomed the arrival of the village's second defibrillator, which was installed last month on Marcham Primary School.

Mr Tracey said: "I was really pleased to hear Marcham was getting a second. It’s not a particularly big village but people should not ought to be more than 10 minutes away from a defibrillator. I am certain this will cut down the time to get to one, which is really positive."

The defibrillator was funded by Marcham Parish Council at a cost of about £2,500.

Its chairwoman Ruth Mander, who lives in the village, said: “It’s there just in case. The school seemed like the logical place to put it.”

A session will be scheduled in the coming months for people to learn how to use it, while a separate course will teach the same skills to regulars at Abingdon Lock.

Anyone interested in fundraising for a defibrillator at another local lock can email waterwaysthames@environment-agency.gov.uk.