A Baxi salesman has been attacked after fending off a man with a sword while on a new-year holiday.

A Baxi salesman has been attacked after fending off a man with a sword while on a new-year holiday.

Gary Wainright was in a bar in Tenerife with family and friends when a man came in brandishing a three-foot sword.

The sword broke Wainright's arm in four places and his main artery was severed after he was sliced repeatedly across the arm when he used a chair to deflect the man's strikes. Doctors said he could have lost an arm or even bled to death.

His actions enabled more than 100 people in the bar to escape, including women and children.

In hospital, Wainright's bone was pinned and he received 178 stitches. He said: "This was about protecting my family, friends and their kids."

Wainright's manager, Graham Parkes, said: "We are all shocked and stunned by what has happened to Gary. He needs to have further surgery to repair the damage to his nerves, but he is in good spirits.

"I'm sure everyone in the industry will join me in wishing him a speedy recovery."