A former paramedic told of his despair after his wife suffered a heart attack - and died waiting almost an hour for an ambulance.
Nigel Mitchell, 63, who has raised tens of thousands of pounds for defibrillators in his rural community, claims he had been warned a 999 crew might take 90 minutes to reach Gill, his wife of 43 years. She had suffered a cardiac arrest while they were on their morning dog walk.
Nigel, who served the North East Ambulance Service (NEAS) for 32 years, said he told their 999 call handler that a helicopter would be needed. He claimed she told him that they 'did not send one for anybody' despite his vast experience for NEAS.
