Desperate bid fails to save homeless man sleeping on the streets in -5C

PASSERS-BY tried in vain to save a “homeless” man who died as he slept rough in sub-zero temperatures on the streets of Edinburgh.

The man slept next to another man on discarded mattresses in the centre of Edinburgh in temperatures as low as -5C. His friend cried out for help because he could not wake him and those passing by did what they could to save him.

Politicians have said the tragedy highlighted an issue which should “shame us all”.

Owner of nearby Ramsay’s B&B, Norman Ramsay, 56, was shocked by Thursday’s incident.

He said: “I came along the street at 6.45am and saw two gentlemen lying on the pavement on a mattress in sleeping bags. I saw one man rolling his sleeping bag up, then shaking his friend but he wasn’t responding.

“One of the neighbours went out and must have been speaking to the NHS on the phone while giving CPR. He started being sick because he obviously hadn’t done anything like that before. Next thing a woman comes running down the road in her pyjamas. The emergency responders arrived and she was helping a paramedic.”

The man’s death, near St Mary’s Primary School, is being treated as unexplained and is not believed to be suspicious.

A spokesman for the Cyrenians charity said: “It is so sad to hear of another person who has died while sleeping rough in Edinburgh. Our thoughts are with this man’s friends and family, and those who came to his aid.”