Son ‘may have been saved if he hadn’t been in locked park’
A YOUNG steelworker who collapsed and died in a Cardiff park after paramedics were delayed by a locked gate was just “in the wrong place at the wrong time”, his grieving mum has said.
Noel Acreman, 24, suffered sudden cardiac arrest as he walked through Bute Park while out with a friend to watch a rugby game.
An inquest heard the park’s main gates were locked, meaning emergency services weren’t able to reach him in time.
Now – two years on from the tragedy – his mum Katherine Acreman, 54, has spoken publicly about her son’s death for the first time.
It comes as the family has helped raise thousands of pounds to fund defibrillators to reduce the chance of other people suffering the same fate.
Recalling the death of her son, Katherine said hearing the heartbreaking news was “totally unexpected” and the loss of her only child was devastating for the family.
Police told Katherine and her husband about Noel’s death shortly after his collapse on February 5, 2017.
Katherine said: “Noel decided to walk through Bute Park to get to the bus stop before he collapsed. He was out with a friend watching the rugby, as was I with my husband.
“When we got home the police arrived to tell us the news. It was the last news we were expecting. He had never been ill, it was totally unexpected.
“I started to ask myself, ‘why Noel?,’ he was so healthy but it seems to be common among young fit men and women.”
Katherine says she doesn’t blame the council for not opening the gates quickly enough. But she believes if he had been walking elsewhere, he may have survived.
She added: “Nothing we do is going to bring Noel back, he was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. If he had walked on the main road, the paramedics may have gotten there sooner. “But you don’t know that, do you? “He was going to propose to his girlfriend a week later on her birthday. He was our world, we did everything for him since he was young.
“He went with us almost everywhere, it’s extremely sad.
“The first year was horrible because of memories and anniversaries and we also felt responsible for looking after his girlfriend.
“Our family is so strong, and that’s what has helped us through it.”
“Nothing we do will bring him back, we just have to accept that it happened. Me and my husband recently went to Bute Park for the first time – which is another obstacle we’ve been able to work on.
“We aren’t angry at all, the people who were there at the time did everything they could to save him.”
There were no defibrillators available at the time and now the family are working with the Tonyrefail & Gilfach Goch Community Defibrillators group which has helped set up 28 publicaccess devices, worth up to £24,000.
The family also took part in a 10K run at Bute Park which marked two years since Noel had passed away.
Noel’s cousin Samara Jayne, 29, said: “Noel was walking through Bute Park when he collapsed and there were no defibrillators. People performed CPR but unfortunately it wasn’t enough to save him. As a family, we wanted to raise money for this fantastic group as they have done so much for the community.
“The run at Bute Park was emotional, but it was a good way to remember Noel as he passed away in the same park. You don’t realise how important defibrillators are until something like this happens to you or someone you know.
“The group all work voluntarily and they have set up 28 in our community. They have been so fantastic and the support we have received from them has been amazing.”
The family set up a crowdfunding page and raised about £1,800 which will all be donated to the group. Last year they also raised £1,000 at an afternoon tea event.
The cost of a defibrillator is about £1,200 and Tonyrefail & Gilfach Goch Community Defibrillators now believes it has the second-highest concentration of defibrillators in the UK.
Steve Kiff, 48, is a treasurer of the group and believes it is important members of the public are able to access the life-saving equipment.
He said: “The group started two and a half years ago when someone in our community had to use one in work. We know how important they are and we know that in our community, 99% of people are within 500m of one.
“We also have three qualified trainers who teach people how to use the equipment, especially because they’re so simple. All the money we raise goes back into the community and setting up the equipment.”