A mother has revealed her teenage son’s near-death experience after he suffered a cardiac arrest when a group of youths attempted to rob his friend in Piccadilly Gardens. Blake Speirs, 13, is currently battling for his life at Manchester Royal Infirmary following the incident which occurred around 9pm on Sunday (February 16).
He was with two friends when the group allegedly “ran over” before attempting to rob them.
In the ensuing chaos, Blake’s mum, Tracy Spiers, said her terrified son experienced a cardiac arrest. She recounted how Blake had “died at the scene and then in the ambulance” requiring resuscitation twice by emergency personnel.
While Blake is now receiving care at the MRI and is “trying to open his eyes”, Tracey, 35, told the Manchester Evening News that he is “definitely not out of the woods”. She added: “Nobody wants to see their child like that, fighting for his life. They scared my son to the point where he had a cardiac arrest.”
A passing couple rushed to assist Blake as he lay in the street. In a message to these unknown good Samaritans, Tracey expressed her gratitude: “I don’t know who you are, but thank you.”, reports the Manchester Evening News.
Tracey disclosed that Blake had “snuck out” from their family home in Eccles on Sunday evening to meet his friends in town. He was “dancing” to a TikTok video when a group of older children approached.
“He wasn’t touched,” she stated. “His friend said nobody touched him. He was that scared something happened, he’s got no problem, no heart conditions, it doesn’t make any sense.”
She affectionately described her son, saying: “He’s amazing, he’s dead funny, he’s dead loud and he’s just an amazing kid, he really is. He’s my sidekick, where I go he goes.”
She expressed her deep bond with him, stating: “I didn’t want to live without my son, he’s everything to me. If he didn’t make it neither would I.”
Tracey, who recently welcomed Blake’s baby brother Louie into the world, now faces a nerve-wracking wait for medical results. “We’re waiting on more tests, the brain scan and the heart scan,” she shared.
“One of the scans came back but his pupils are ok, so that’s looking good. He’s trying to wake up.”
She also believes in the protective presence of her departed loved ones, saying: “My mum and nana Lorraine and Mary, they died not long ago and they were definitely looking over him.”
In light of the terrifying incident that occurred on Sunday evening, Tracey wants to raise awareness about such incidents. “It’s bad that kids think they can go and do that to other kids,” she remarked.
“It’s quite scary. Blake and his friends were just having fun.”
The Manchester Evening News has contacted Greater Manchester Police and North West Ambulance Service for their comments.