Rugby player waits nearly two hours for ambulance after breaking neck

A Welsh rugby player with a broken neck was left waiting almost two hours for an ambulance - because the 999 service was tied up by people with "coughs and colds".

Ben Lloyd, 32, was in agony and couldn't move after suffering a fractured vertebrae in a crunching tackle at Ynysddu in Caerphilly.

An ambulance was called just three minutes after the injury - but it was a full hour before a first responder arrived on the scene.

Ben was forced to lie on the ground covered in staff jackets and jerseys to keep him warm during the wait.

Finally - an hour and 47 minutes after the tackle - an ambulance arrived to take the player to hospital.

Now Ben has hit out - and said the driver told him the wait was due people using the services for "colds and other minor illnesses".

Ben, from Pontllanfraith, was playing for village side Ynysddu RFC against Abergavenny RFC on Saturday when he was injured in the tackle.

He is in a body brace but Ynysddu RFC confirmed that the injuries will not lead to paralysis.

A Welsh Ambulance Service spokesman confirmed that the ambulance arrived one hour and 47 minutes after the first call was made.

Darryl Collins, Head of operations for the Aneurin Bevan Health Board area, said an "extremely high demand on the service" led to the delay.

Ben is asking people to "think twice" before calling the emergency services for coughs and colds.