Loose change saves man from DIY injury

A man has had a lucky escape from a DIY disaster thanks to change in his pocket, paramedics have said.

The 60-year-old was using a circular saw to put together decking at his home near Uttoxeter, Staffordshire.

But the saw kicked back and the man suffered a six-inch long gash in his left thigh.

A crew from West Midlands Ambulance Service were called at 4.20pm yesterday and said money in the man's pocket meant the deepest part of the cut was only an inch.

A spokesman for the service said: "Although a serious wound, it could have been considerably worse had the blade not caught the coins in the man's pocket first.

"A number of coins had been badly damaged, but they had stopped the blade going deeper into the man's leg."

The man was taken to the to Royal Stoke University Hospital to have the wound closed.