Ambulance took two hours to get to scene of fatal accident

THE Welsh Ambulance Service admitted it took almost two hours to reach the scene of a serious crash after which an elderly woman died.

The woman, who hasn’t been named, was airlifted to Stoke an hour after the two-vehicle crash on the A470 that left three other people injured on September 19. She died two days later.

The crash happened near the Maenan Abbey Hotel, Llanrwst, just after 3pm and shut the road for almost eight hours.

The ambulance service was called at 3.12pm and the first ambulance arrived at 5pm. The second ambulance arrived at 5.30pm.

The Air Ambulance arrived an hour after the emergency calls were first made. The ambulance service said the incident was “categorised as a serious but not immediately life-threatening call”. Charles Owen, who stopped at the scene to assist, said it was “distressing” and “frustrating” that the ambulance service took so long to attend.

He said: “We always get told about the ‘golden hour’, that period of time immediately after a traumatic injury during which there is the highest likelihood that prompt medical and surgical treatment will prevent death.

Two hours later is no good at all. “It’s unacceptable with what’s going on with the Welsh Ambulance Service, but then it doesn’t help that ambulances are piling up outside hospitals for hours as the changeovers are so slow.”

Mr Owen added: “There were six police cars on the scene but what was needed were ambulances. It was a horrible situation and it’s so very sad to hear the poor lady has died. We kept on hearing sirens in the distance, thinking, hoping it was an ambulance, but it never was. It’s unacceptable.”

Aberconwy AM Janet FinchSaunders said: “This is scandalous, my thoughts go out to the family.

“Lives are now being lost and I’m shocked to hear what has happened in this tragic incident.

“The ambulance service are now being called as people can’t even see their GPs. I have raised it as a debate in the Senedd.”

Stephen Sheldon, the Welsh Ambulance Service’s interim operations manager in North West Wales, said: “We had a call at 3.12pm on Sunday, 19 September, to reports of a two-vehicle road traffic collision in Llanrwst, which was categorised as a serious but not immediately life-threatening call.

“We sent two ambulances and an air ambulance, the first resource arriving at scene approximately one hour after the call. We’re keen to better understand the concerns of those involved, and would invite patients or their representatives to contact the Trust so that we can liaise directly with them.”