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82-year-old Ken Marwood was visiting friend when he suddenly slipped and fell in his friend’s garden. He hit his head on some paving stones, fractured his cheek, cut his arms and legs, and even vomited blood. As Marwood lay on the ground, he bled continuously from his nose and mouth.
His wife, Barbara, 72, called for an ambulance as soon as she could – around 10:30 a.m. – but no one showed up.
Marwood’s friends came out of the house upon her request, in hopes of carrying Marwood back inside the house, but he was in too much pain. He didn’t want to be moved.
Barbara and Marwood’s friends then had no choice but to bring out blankets from their home and fill hot water heaters to tend to Marwood as they waited for help.
During the wait, Barbara called for emergency services again. The person on the line asked her to carry out personal assessments of her husband’s health, but then put her on hold, where she waited in the queue – moving bath and forth – for an incredibly long time.
By the time an ambulance arrived at the house, it was already 2 p.m. Barbara had made a total of four calls before they showed up.
At that point, Marwood had not only laid out on cold cement for four hours, but he’d been bleeding and unable to tend to his diabetes.
Barbara was clearly livid and refuses to let this matter go. “I understand there is other people that have problems but I do hope lessons will be learned from my husband's case,” she said.
Their local emergency care team as issued an apology to the Marwood family and explained that demand for their services have increased over the winter months, but they will do their best to respond as quickly as possible in the future.
There has been no word on Marwood’s status.
