Family in plea to find stranger who gave father CPR
A FAMILY from Cardiff are searching for a heroic man who performed CPR on their dad after he suffered a sudden heart attack in the street.
Bobby Gamlin, 55, suffered a cardiac arrest and collapsed on Albany Road, while he was out shopping with his best friend.
The father of one, from Roath, had no underlying health conditions and collapsed after he began feeling dizzy.
But a passer-by intervened and kept blood flowing around Bobby’s body until the paramedics arrived. The family were told to expect the worse as he was treated in intensive care.
Bobby’s sister Mary Taylor, 44, from Rumney, said they are looking to track down the individual who performed CPR as they “owe him everything”.
She said: “I was at work at the time while Bobby was shopping and as he went to sit down he collapsed.
“A young man who was with his girlfriend asked if he could intervene and began performing CPR while other bystanders called paramedics.
“He performed it by himself and, thankfully to him, we are where we are now. This happened completely out of the blue, there were no warning signs.
“When I had the phone call, it was just devastating and so sudden.”
After two weeks in intensive care, Bobby is due to be moved to a cardiac ward. Doctors initially told the family he could be left with brain damage or he may not even survive.
However, he is now able to feed himself, as he was previously being fed by a tube, and is now sending messages on his phone.
Mary said: “He’s saying the odd word but it is good progress from the initial prognosis. My brother wouldn’t be here right now if it wasn’t for the young man. His friend is still in shock. While the ambulance was there he thanked the young man but he can’t remember much more.”
Now the family have shared a post on Facebook to try to track down the man so they can thank him properly.
They say he is a young man in his early 20s.
Mary added: “Without the man would be a totally different situation.
“The fact the man performed CPR, especially during coronavirus, is so selfless. It would mean everything if we were able to thank him, it would mean the absolute world.” it
facebook.com/WalesOnline
ALMOST three hectares of woods near Danescourt in Cardiff could be chopped down to make way for 36 houses.
The woodland is between the train tracks and Nicholson Webb Close, near to the River Taff.
The Taff Housing Association is applying for planning permission to build affordable housing on the site.
Several trees including oaks, sycamores and ashes would be felled in the plans to build on the land. Developers have been trying for years to build there but have so far not been granted planning permission.
While the latest plans have reduced the number of proposed houses, people living nearby are still objecting to the plans because of the loss of woodland.
Many have written to Cardiff council urging them to refuse permission to chop down the trees and build houses there.
Caroline Dallimore said: “This woodland is a natural green space that has importance for the well-being of local people who have been using it for recreation for many years.
“These woods are an important habitat for wildlife, providing nest sites for birds and foraging and roosting sites for bats, which are a protected species.
“If the development goes ahead mature trees will be lost, having an implication for carbon sequestration and climate change.”
Rhys Ivans said: “This development would remove a much-loved area of woodland. Recent lockdowns have placed greater emphasis on supporting good mental health and this development would remove access to much-needed open space.
“Young children such as my daughter enjoy exploring the woodland, which would be lost if this development was approved. The impact to wildlife would cause a dramatic decrease in biodiversity.”
The houses would be accessed off De Braose Close where a footpath leads to the woods.
In planning documents agents for the housing association said the site was surrounded by urban development, was close to schools, shops and surgeries, and was easily accessed on foot, by bike, or public transport, reducing the need for private cars.
Regarding the impact on trees and the local environment, they said: “The grassland fields are considered to be of poor ecological value, being
species-poor, limited in extent, and subject to significant scrub encroachment.
“The majority of trees have negligible potential, with a small number having low potential.
“The application site is considered of relatively low ecological value with few protected or notable species and habitats identified during the surveys.”
The Save Our Woods campaign has been fighting plans to build there for 17 years, according to Helen Stewart.
The group has left painted pebbles and laminated signs around the woodland to raise awareness of the plans to build houses there.
Ms Stewart said: “When residents were buying houses in Danescourt they were told this green space was being left for them.
“It’s not really suitable for development: underground streams, massive amounts of mud, and sloping downhill. We think that’s why it was not developed when Danescourt was built.
“A lot of people have discovered the woods during lockdown. It’s been used enormously; a godsend during lockdown. It has massive health and well-being advantages to the local community.”
Another part of the debate is the need for more housing in the area. Developers say Danescourt and Llandaff have a “significant need” for more affordable housing but campaigners and locals dispute this, pointing to the 7,000 homes currently being built at PlasdŴr, about a mile away off Llantrisant Road.
Developers have applied to build houses on the woodland twice before – once in 2004 with five houses and again in 2012 with 48 houses. Both plans were refused permission and then dismissed at appeal by the Welsh Government’s planning inspector.
Ms Stewart said: “The planning inspector said [the first application] would have an adverse impact on the area. That was for five homes. How can planning officers now say 36 homes would be any less adverse?”
The latest plans will likely go to councillors on the planning committee to decide whether to grant permission.
People wanting to comment on the plans must contact the council before March 15.