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Newry Leisure Centre staff have been praised after a member of the public experienced chest pains at the facility.
Newry City Councillor Killian Feehan praised the ‘heroic’ response of Council staff at Newry Leisure Centre who came to their aid during the medical emergency.
Councillor Feehan said: “I want to praise the courage and gumption of workers at Newry Leisure Centre who came to the aid of a patron after they began experiencing chest pains.
“It became apparent that the person was having a heart attack, and an ambulance was called immediately. After almost 90 minutes of waiting, no ambulance arrived, so the staff at the Leisure Centre took the laudable decision to transport the person to the hospital for emergency treatment.
“In a day and age where people are reluctant to intervene in such situations, I want to applaud the decency of the workers who did the right thing and stepped in to save this person’s life."
Cllr Feehan spoke of his concern that an ambulance hadn't arrived nearly 90 minutes later. “It is deeply concerning that no ambulance arrived to respond to this life-threatening emergency. This raises serious questions once again about ambulance coverage in our area, and I will be bringing those issues to the relevant bodies as a matter of urgency." He said.
“The heroic response of workers in Newry Leisure Centre may well have saved a life on this occasion, but it is nothing short of disgraceful that this individual had to experience such indignity and that Council workers were left with no choice but to transport the person to hospital.”
