by David Bates
Former England footballer helps elderly couple during motorhome inferno
Graeme Le Saux proved rather much the hero earlier last weekend, following rushing to the aid of an elderly couple whose motorhome containing gas and petrol went up in flames.
The former Chelsea and England defender, who retired from professional football in 2005, marshalled traffic, contacted emergency services and aided the distressed couple after coming across the smoking motorhome near his home in Cranleigh, Surrey.
Le Saux’s wife, Mariana, told local newspaper, GetSurrey: “We assumed they had broken down. There was an older couple and the wife seemed agitated.
“My husband said he would go and see if they were alright, as we could see smoke coming from the side door. He said that the wife was concerned and told her husband to come away.”
After learning that the smouldering motorhome contained petrol and gas, Le Saux’s defensive skills certainly prevailed, as he prevented the 72-year-old-man, who was desperate to retrieve his wallet, from reentering the blaze.
Le Saux and his son then took to guiding traffic away from the fire, which became increasingly fierce and developed into a series of “mini-explosions”. Mariana went on to describe how the motorhome devastatingly went “from a motorhome to ashes in around 25 minutes.”
The 72-year-old man was taken to the Royal Surrey County Hospital in Guildford, although his condition was not described as serious. The former Chelsea star took to twitter to modestly deny his heroism, saying: “It was more a case of getting to the other side of blaze and turning cars back than full on super heroes”.
