A pensioner who fell and fractured his pelvis was cared for by RNLI volunteers as he waited almost six hours for an ambulance.
And when he finally arrived at hospital he faced an almost seven hour delay before being admitted because of a queue of emergency vehicles at A&E.
Tom Parry, 73, was walking home when he slipped on a patch of wet grass at 2pm.
A passer-by saw the father of four in agony and called an ambulance.
Later a friend of Mr Parry called the local lifeboat station for advice and within 10 minutes a team of RNLI volunteers were on hand to help.
They carried the patient, who was in and out of consciousness because of the pain, out of the cold into a nearby bowling club.
Mr Parry, a retired painter and decorator, told the Daily Post : “The RNLI lads managed to get me onto a bodyboard and moved me inside the clubhouse. I honestly don’t know what I would have done if they hadn’t come to help me.
“It was freezing but locals heard what had happened and one person kept bringing me hot water bottles.
“I don’t remember in detail what happened because I was dazed, but I know how well the RNLI boys were treating me. They were amazing.”
Mr Parry, from Criccieth, North Wales, said an ambulance arrived at around 7.45pm to take him to hospital in Bangor.
He said: “We had to wait until it was around 2.30am before I could go in, but they were checking on me regularly.
“It’s not their fault that I had to wait, it’s just how things are with staffing levels and Covid on top of that.”
Medics discovered he had split his groin, fractured his pelvis and torn the ligaments in his left arm and leg.
After two days in A&E he was moved on to a ward where he spent another eight days.
Liz Wedley, Head of Service (Emergency Medical Services) for the Welsh Ambulance Service in North Wales, has apologised for delays experienced by Mr Parry last December.
She said: “We are sorry to hear that Mr Parry experienced a longer than expected wait for an ambulance after his fall.
“On the day in question, we were experiencing very high call volume and demand for our services in the Gwynedd area.”
She added:“We would like to extend our thanks to the RNLI staff and off-duty police officer who came to assist Mr Parry and kept him comfortable.
“We wish Mr Parry all the best for a continued recovery from his injuries and would invite him to contact us directly should he wish to discuss our response further.”
