The Good Samaritan's.

I had been away for twenty-four hours with work, and shortly after arriving home, I then had to go back out to look after my Mum. Later back home I was shattered and was in a deep sleep on the sofa, when my husband rushed into the room and said, “Quick get a blanket a man outside has collapsed!”

I quickly got my bearings and went upstairs and saw a mini blanket that I had washed a few days ago and now it was clean and dry, I ran down the stairs and went out into the wet dark late night.

Across the road a man was laying down on the path, his legs dangling in the road. There was a young man standing by him on the phone. When he got off the phone he said to my husband, “I have just been told, the ambulance will arrive in about four hours from now, and she has told me, “Do not move him.”

The blanket was far too small, it barely covered him, so I ran back into the house and saw a fleeced blanket, I took it outside and covered him up, putting it on top of the first blanket.

He was in a lot of pain at his neck and head, Paul wanted to bring him in the house, I remined him, “He is not to be moved.” Paul then said, “He needs a cushion for his head,” I ran back into the house, and the cushion I use when sitting on the sofa, mine, I took it and brought it out, and gently put it under his head.

The young man, who had rung for the ambulance said, “I have to go somewhere, I will be back.” He walked off, and I said, to Paul, “He will not be back!”

The cushion that I had bought and put under his head was not high enough, so I went back in the house and got another cushion and we put it gently under his head. Paul asked him, “Have you been eating, ok?” He replied, “No, I haven’t.” I asked him, “When you fell, did you blackout?” He replied, “No.”    

He was starting to shake, Paul said to him, “Do you want a hot drink?” He replied, “Yes, coffee,” I asked him, “How many sugars?” Christian replied, “One, as I’m diabetic.”

I went back inside, the kettle was still warm with water, as Paul had recently made himself a drink, and I thought, if he is on his back, it will be very hard for him to drink, let alone, a hot drink. I made his milky coffee with a heaped teaspoon and put on disposable gloves and got an unopened straw and went outside.

The lad that had walked away, and said he would be back, he was back! I said, to him, “I told my husband you would not be back, you proved me wrong, lovely to see you.”

Surprisingly, the ambulance was also there too. It was lovely to see them it was a relief. The two young female paramedics, listened to the information that the lad and my husband said to them, about the Casualty, for individually they had seen him before he fell.

They asked Christian questions; he didn’t give much info to them. My coffee was not needed, I had chosen one of my best mugs.

All eyes now were on the paramedics. Christian was shaking a lot; he was clearly in shock. He even tried to get up, but he couldn’t. With bright lights from the side of the ambulance, beaming from both ends of the van.

They supported his head, with what looked like loo rolls, that opened in the middle, and either side of the roll was at his ears, then from the top, of his forehead and chin they had wide sticky tape, that was secured to the side of what looked like loo rolls, at his ears.

They could see his hand was shaking, they then removed my blankets, and put theirs on him. One of the paramedics told him, “There is heated blankets in the ambulance for you.” They had what looked like a metal thin stretcher that was in two halves, with one half placed on his left and the other on his right. They then clipped them together.

They lifted him up, and put him on the ‘bed’ with wheels, made sure he was secured on there, and pushed him onto the ambulance.

They took his carrier bag, with them, this bag and its contents was underneath him, all the time that he was on the wet, and cold ground, underneath his back. One of the paramedics, looked quickly inside for clues for more info about him, maybe his address, that he had withheld.

I let Christian know that the young man who was with him first, when he collapsed, had returned, as his head was facing one way to the side.

I said to Christian, “The young man who rang the ambulance for you as returned,” Christian said, “Thank you brother,” As he was about to be taken into the ambulance, Paul and myself said to Christian, “All the best, get well soon.”

I picked up the undrunk, sweet, coffee now cold and then the lad said to me and Paul, “You are the parents of Daniel.” We were both surprised and said, “Yes we are,” He said, “I know him well, we went to the same school, he is younger than I.” I said, to him, “What a small world, what is your name, so we can tell Daniel?”

He told us his name, and then he said, “Bye.” We said, “Goodbye,” To him too. And we went inside. The ambulance was then in the same place, in the middle of the narrow one-way road, for the next hour! What they were doing in there, we don’t know.  I was getting concerned. Paul said, “Maybe there is no beds at the moment at the hospital?” I replied, “Well they could have waited at the hospital?”

At 12.50am they drove off, and then soon after, the clocks changed. Christian had said to Paul, “I live on this road,” But he didn’t give a number, Paul who smokes at the front door, sees everyone who passes by, but he has never seen Christian before, or since.

The next day we told Daniel, and he said of the lad that rang for the ambulance, “I remember him from school, he is a nice lad.”

I wish Christian a speedy recovery.