A devastated wife told how her husband died in front of her after choking on a piece of steak during dinner.
Jennifer McMillan, 40, was enjoying a meal with husband Paul, 41, when the piece of meat got lodged in his throat.
Mum-of-one Jennifer, from Falkirk, frantically attempted to save Paul by trying to perform the Heimlich manoeuvre.
Paramedics battled to keep him alive for 90 minutes but call handler Paul suffered a cardiac arrest and died at home.
Ms McMillan said her daughter Lucy, ten, was upstairs when the tragedy unfolded.
She is now urging others to learn first aid skills so they can help someone when they are choking.
Ms McMillan said: “It was such a shock. One minute we were sitting eating and the next thing he began choking.
“I tried to help him, even attempting the Heimlich manoeuvre but Paul was a big guy and I couldn’t manage.
“It all happened so quick and I still can’t believe he has gone but at least I know that I tried to help him.
“That’s my one comfort – I did what I could for him.
“The paramedics were wonderful, working on him for 90 minutes but they couldn’t do anything.
“I’ve since been told that if a doctor had been sitting next to him even they wouldn’t have been able to save him.”
SWNSMs McMillan described her husband as a ‘gentle giant’ willing to help anyone.
Originally from Port Glasgow, Paul moved to Falkirk in 2017 after the couple met.
They married at Gretna Green in 2018 and set up home with Ms McMillan’s daughter who she said Paul thought of as his own.
She said: “He was devoted to Lucy. Sadly she was upstairs when it happened and heard everything.
“She was the one who let the paramedics into the house.
“Only a few days before we had been out for a meal to celebrate my 40th birthday.
“I had been through breast cancer last year and had got the all clear in October.
“We had four weddings to go to this year and so many other plans and holidays that we wanted to have after the Covid lockdown.
“Paul was a gentle giant and the sort of person who would help anyone. He was full of fun but if you needed it, he would give you the shirt off his back.
“We are all so shocked that one minute he was here and next he had gone.
“I just think he is on an extra long shift and will be home soon.”
Follow STV News on WhatsApp
Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
