Paramedic attacked while he responded to emergency call
A PARAMEDIC has relived the moment he was attacked by a member of the public and left with lifechanging injuries.
Dylan Lloyd Davies was called to reports a man had been stabbed in Blaenau Ffestiniog, Gwynedd, in December 2020, but on entering the property found Cemlyn Hughes to be uncooperative.
In the presence of North Wales Police, Hughes launched an attack on the paramedic, leaving him with a serious shoulder injury.
Hughes, of Manod, Blaenau Ffestiniog, pleaded guilty to assaulting an emergency worker and was given an 11-week custodial sentence, suspended for a year, at Caernarfon Magistrates’ Court on Monday. The 29-year-old was also ordered to abstain from alcohol for 120 days and pay £500 compensation to Mr Davies.
“The initial report we had was that a man had been stabbed six times, but when we got there there wasn’t a lot of blood,” recalled Mr Davies, 45.
“We were trying to understand what had happened to the man and make a scene assessment, but he turned aggressive and shouted to be left alone.
“He squared up to me so I put my hand out to create some space, but at that point he rugby tackled me across the room, physically lifting me off my feet.
“When I tried to defend myself, we both fell on top of the metal bed frame, him landing on top of me.
“I’ve been doing this job for a long time and you get a sixth sense when something is about to go wrong, but I didn’t get that here, which is the frightening thing. I didn’t feel threatened at all until it was too late.”
He added: “Between the shock and the adrenaline, I felt fine initially. I went back to station to report it and debrief with my colleagues, then while we were on the way to the next call I realised I couldn’t lift my arm.
“Ten months on and I’m in as much pain now as I was in day one.”
Doctors suspect Mr Davies has torn cartilage in his shoulder, but a MRI scan he had last week will confirm definitively.