London - As a former racing driver, 102-year-old Ron Easton is still pretty nippy – tending his garden and messing around with sports cars.
So the centenarian – nicknamed ‘Ton-up Ron’ – probably thought nothing about popping up on to his roof to fix a faulty TV aerial at the weekend.
However, Mr Easton is lucky to be alive, after he got into difficulty up there and wasn’t found for three days.
He is thought to have got trapped on the roof on Sunday, but it was not until Wednesday morning that he was discovered above his home at Bigbury-on-Sea, Devon. Mr Easton had to be airlifted to safety and he remained at Derriford Hospital in Plymouth in a stable condition on Friday.
Nigel Toms, from South Western Ambulance Service, who was the first paramedic on scene, said: ‘The man was actually lying in a gulley between his house and garage. So he was in a bit of a pickle.
"His life was definitely at risk, so he’s a very fortunate man."
Trish Bagley, who delivers milk to Mr Easton, said she became worried about him on Wednesday when she found two unopened bottles from the previous two mornings.
She spoke to a local shopkeeper who then called a maintenance man, and they found him on the roof of his house. Mrs Bagley said: “He’s a strong man. He’s always out in the garden. Hopefully he will make a full recovery.”
Mr Easton is an original member of the South Hams Motor Club, which celebrated its half-century in 2015. He was a taxi driver who took a job transporting heavy guns for the Artillery Engineers during the Second World War.
He then ran a car rental business until he retired. By his 100th birthday he was still driving a 1981 MGB GT and 2004 MGF.