Passenger with Nut Allergy Saved by Crew, Fellow Flyer After Going into Anaphylactic Shock Mid-Flight: ‘I’d Gone Tomato Red’

A man with a nut allergy is lucky to be alive thanks to the quick actions of the cabin crew and a fellow passenger.

Andrew Rawle, who has allergies to nuts and some medications, had been on a Virgin Australia flight headed to Newman, a remote mining town in Australia, on Sunday, Jan. 4, when he had a major allergic reaction during the flight, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).

The passenger told the outlet that after being given some “cheese and crackers” — which he noted contained no allergens — to snack on, his body began to go into anaphylactic shock, which is a potentially life-threatening allergic reaction that happens when the body’s immune system releases a flood of chemicals that can cause a person to go into shock, per the Mayo Clinic.

Rawle said he could feel his throat closing up due to the allergic reaction, telling the outlet, “I just immediately jumped up, knowing that in my hand luggage I had an EpiPen.”

“Very clearly, the cabin crew could see there was something wrong…,” he continued. “I’d gone incredibly tomato red and I asked the cabin crew through a very strained voice, ‘Can I just quickly swing behind the curtain and jab myself in the leg?’ ”

While Rawle was able to breathe again thanks to his EpiPen, he told ABC that the worst was not over as he felt a “wave or another episode was coming along” about 20 minutes later when his “throat started to tense up again.”

He said that the cabin crew sprung into action again and brought him oxygen as they attempted to find a doctor onboard. When there was none, they asked if any other passengers happened to have an EpiPen he could use.

“Then a lovely young lady, a stranger to me, pressed the call button and delivered me an EpiPen, which I then jabbed into my other leg,” Rawle said.

He said that he knew another wave was likely and noted that the pilots “absolutely punched it” to Newman to ensure that he would be able to get medical treatment in time, per ABC. When the plane landed, an ambulance was there waiting to give him adrenaline and transport him to a nearby hospital for further care, the outlet reported.

Virgin Australia did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment on the incident.

According to ABC, most flight cabin crews are taught to manage an anaphylaxis reaction as part of their flight medical training and an EpiPen is usually part of an emergency medical kit on flights, but Rawle’s particular flight did not have one available.

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Rawle told ABC that the incident on the plane was the worst allergic reaction he had ever had, and he believes that it may have been due to him touching the safety card, which he said may have contained traces of food from a prior flight. He added that he was thankful to the cabin crew and his fellow passenger who stepped in to help save his life.

“I don’t think we’d have made it anywhere, either to Newman or an alternate airport, had that passenger not put their hand up,” he said.

He added of the flight crew, “I’m very happy with the service that they provided outside of the normal scope of their jobs.”