South West Ambulance Service has apologised to a 72-year-old Falmouth man after he was left lying on the ground in temperatures of -5c for 11 hours with a broken leg.

As reported in the Packet today, Michael Onoufriou wrote to Falmouth and Truro MP Cherilyn Mackrory urging her to do something to rectify this “inhuman” situation after his ordeal.

He says he was walking up some steps near his home at around 7.15pm on December 14 last year when he fell causing the injury.

He said luckily he was able to contact his wife on his mobile and an ambulance was called for the first time at 7:32 pm.

Further calls were made at 9:35pm, twenty past midnight, 3:07am and 6:34am. He said an ambulance finally arrived at 6:22 am, 11 hours after the initial call.

In a statement South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust (SWASFT) said they were sorry for what happened but handover delays at hospitals were delaying response times: “We are sorry that we were unable to provide Mr Onoufriou with a timely response and we have shared with him the findings of our investigation into his experience,” the trust said in a statement.

"Our ambulance clinicians strive every day to deliver their best care for patients, but our performance has not returned to pre-pandemic levels, partly due to handover delays at emergency departments.

“Health and social care services are under enormous pressure. We are working with our partners in the NHS and social care, to do all we can to improve the service that patients receive.”

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Mr Onoufriou had nothing but praise for the paramedics who eventually attended and said they were appalled that he had had to wait so long and apologised profusely on behalf of South Western Ambulance Service.

He said. “They provided excellent care and said that had I not been looked after and kept warm I would not have survived the night.”

Even on arrival at the Royal Cornwall Hospital in Truro Mr Onoufriou was in the care of the ambulance service until the afternoon when a bed was finally found for him.

Cherilyn Mackrory MP has been contacted for a response.