Moray woman who lay in rain and hail for six hours after fall praises help provided by Elgin fire crew
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A MORAY woman who slipped on her doorstep and was left in the freezing cold for more than six hours has praised the efforts of firefighters who came to her aid.
Ann Blackwood (59), who stays in a cottage near Kellas, slipped on ice outside her property as bitterly cold weather was biting on Monday, December 4.
Social care assistant Ann, who fractured a bone in her lower back in the fall, was left lying on her doorstep as hail and rain hammered down, with temperatures below freezing.
The ambulance was called immediately after the 10.30am fall, with Ann unable to move or be moved. Her family, who were in the house at the time, placed her under blankets and – as hail came – tarpaulin, but were unable to lift her.
At 4.30pm, an ambulance call handler phoned to inform the family that it could be another six hours before help arrived.
At that point, Ann's husband decided to call the fire service and a five-strong crew – led by Watch Commander Alan Weston – came out to help her inside and warm her up before the ambulance arrived at about 6pm.
Ann was keen to emphasise that she is not critical of the busy ambulance workers, who were "marvellous" when they arrived. But she wanted to give special praise to the team at Elgin Fire Station.
"I hit my back on the concrete step and couldn't move," she explained. "I lay on the slabs outside the front of my house in the wet, hailstones, rains, whatever the elements threw at me, for over six hours.
"The last straw for my husband was when they said it could be another six hours. It had already been six hours at that point and the thought of lying there for another six was awful.
"He contacted the local fire crew at Elgin and within 30 minutes they were there. They put me onto a board and got me into the house. They were absolutely marvellous and so kind.
"They stayed with me for an hour until the ambulance arrived to check that I was dry and safe. I was so grateful when they turned up. They did a cracking job and it would be nice for them to get some recognition."
An ambulance came from Grantown-on-Spey and took Ann to Raigmore Hospital in Inverness, where she waited for four hours in the ambulance before getting inside to a bed.
The diagnosis was a small fracture in her back and bad bruising. Ann is resting up at home and said she will 'be fine' in a couple of weeks time.
"I'll rest for the next few days," she said. "I have plenty medication for the pain. I work as a social care worker for the Moray Council in Elgin so I'll have a couple of weeks off work.
"It was nice to get some of that care back! My family were fantastic and I couldn't believe the effort from the fire crew. Andy and Eric from the ambulance crew were brilliant, too."
