Volunteer first-aider is an unsung hero of the George Square bin lorry tragedy

“One minute I was shopping for my sons. The next I was helping people fight for their lives.”

A volunteer first-aider has emerged as one of the unsung heroes of the George Square bin lorry tragedy.

Graham Ross abandoned his Christmas shopping to help coordinate treatment for those injured in the horror incident.

Speaking for the first time, Graham explained how he rushed from a festive market to help colleagues from St Andrew’s First Aid assist those hurt by the out-of-control refuse truck.

The team of humble heroes have been credited with aiding dozens of pedestrians struck as the 20-tonne truck careered up Queen Street on December 22.

Equipped with lifesaving skills mastered in 16 years as a St Andrew’s volunteer, Graham helped coordinate his team as they battled to save lives . . . despite nursing a dislocated shoulder and having his arm in a sling.

He liaised with five heroic St Andrew’s colleagues who had leapt over fences from their post overseeing George Square’s ice rink to get to those injured in the immediate aftermath of the sickening crash.

Modest Graham, 42, from Riddrie, Glasgow, has decided to tell his story now with backing from his bosses to encourage others to get equipped with vital first aid knowledge which could help save lives.

In his first interview since the terrible accident, the dad-of-three hopes to encourage Sunday Post readers to help swell the ranks of St Andrew’s First Aid.

He said: “I was shopping for my boys and my mum and I were on Argyle Street when we could start to hear sirens. I instantly started to make my way to George Square thinking, ‘What can I do?’

“I knew there was a team at the ice rink who would be doing what they could, and knew as a first-aider that I could potentially offer assistance.”

Graham arrived to a sickening scene of carnage, which his volunteer colleagues had been first to. Scores of shoppers were screaming in terror and agony, with dozens seriously injured. Six people were dead, and the Tarmac stained red.

Sirens shrilled in time with the screams of witnesses some friends, some family who’d crumpled to the ground after watching the grim spectacle unfold. Yet the team of five ice-rink volunteers some of whom were as young as 18 didn’t bat an eyelid.

“Everyone was running on adrenaline, but the St Andrew’s training allowed each of them to cope with what they’d had to deal with,”said Graham. “There was still so much police activity but there was an eerie silence around the whole place.”

Jim Dorman, operations director at St Andrew’s, said: “This is where their first-aid training would have kicked in. They’d find the worst injured and then establish what treatment they could do.

“What happened that day and the injuries that had been sustained how do you plan for something like that? Our first-aiders were the first ones on the scene and coped with the skills they had.”

Hundreds of witnesses have paid tribute to the St Andrew’s staff. Glasgow resident Eileen Lochhead who was caught up in the carnage summed-up the way the whole city responded, saying: “Glasgow needs to say thank you to these volunteers. They represented each and every one of us who wanted to help.”

For Graham and his team, it was the years of experience and support working for St Andrew’s first-aid group that gave them the confidence to do what they could to try and save lives.

He said: “First-aid skills can be so vital to have. You never know when you might need them.”

Councillor Gordon Matheson, Leader of Glasgow City Council, told The Sunday Post everyone is thankful of what Graham and his team did that day.

He said: “It’s no surprise that people went to the aid of those in need, but we’re very grateful to everyone who assisted during this tragic incident.”

It was revealed last week that an appeal fund for the victims of last month’s tragedy has now reached more than £160,000.

Anyone who wishes to donate can do so by calling 0141 287 7878.