A LEISURE attendant from Greenock has been hailed a hero after helping a young boy who was left badly injured after being struck by an ice skate just millimetres from his throat.

Quick-thinking Paul Robertson sprung into action at the Waterfront Leisure Complex rink following a freak accident which left a 10-year-old lad needing urgent hospital treatment for a deep wound to his chin that cut right down to the bone.

It was initially thought the boy’s throat had been cut and Paul, 19, initially feared his jugular vein may have been severed after seeing him clutching his throat.

Despite his own fears, the Inverclyde Leisure attendant kept a cool head and immediately stepped in to stem the flow of blood and reassure the youngster and his distressed mum.

Paul, who lives in Bow Road, told the Tele: “You could see the bone — the cut was that deep.

“When I came over and saw him like that I thought it was his neck and jugular.

“There was blood on the ice and a lot of blood in the first aid room.

“You see falls every day but that one was the worst I’ve ever seen.

“The boy and his mum were panicking. She thought it was his throat.

“I talked him through it and told him he would be okay and his mum that he would be fine. I took him away and got him patched up as best I could and kept the wound closed over with a butterfly stitch from first aid.

“I was sweating but I couldn’t show it — I just had to get on with it.

“I was in charge and I couldn’t look about and look for someone else or think about what to do.”

It’s believed the boy was enjoying a day out with his older brother when the frightening incident happened and that he may have been caught by his sibling’s skate.

Modest ice rink worker Paul has been praised for how he handled the difficult situation, which arose at a recent Friday night ice skating disco.

An eyewitness told the Telegraph: “The part of the ice where the accident happened was covered in blood and other children were screaming.

“He was giving directions to other staff to keep people off the ice.

“The young man was calmness personified when everyone else was in a right state or in shock. Young people can get such a bad rap these days but this staff member deserves to be praised and recognised for his actions.

“There were about 20 people on the rink and everyone was having a great time and then it was just pure horror.

“The staff member calmed both brothers as well and their mother was pale with shock.”

Thankfully the injured youngster appears to have escaped with no serious lasting damage having received stitches at hospital.

Paul, a former Inverclyde Academy pupil, said: “I was just hoping the wee guy was okay. That’s all I could think about during the rest of my shift.

“He’s since been back in and took a sweetie off me so I think he is fine. He was a brave wee boy.

“He came back with his mum and she gave me a big cuddle.

“It was good to see he’s okay.”

Paul, who has been working at the Waterfront for 18 months, reserved special praise for his boss Willie Compston.

He said: “I couldn’t have done it without him — he talked me through it.”
Paul added: “I hope I don’t get a repeat like that any time soon.”