AM criticised for questioning hospital's hit and run response

The unit fully reopened at 7pm only two hours after these tragic events. At the time of the incident the numbers and condition of the patients we were expecting was unknown due to the complexity and nature of the incident the emergency services were dealing with. This does not mean that the UHB was unable to cope with the volume of patients we received but was an appropriate action in line with the Major Incident procedure and our need to respond to needs of the severely injured.

At a time when people - including children - are still being treated at UHW, these remarks show a total lack of respect and human warmth. People will be appalled by his comments, coming so soon after the horrendous events of last Friday. Hospital staff performed with great professionalism and skill under very difficult circumstances. Everyone is grateful for the dedication they showed. This begs the question - where on earth is Darren Millar's judgement?

My sympathies extend to the families involved and I appreciate the hard work done by doctors and A&E staff. I was simply raising concerns which had been raised with me about the capacity of emergency services in our capital city to deal with a major incident. It's a shame there wasn't this clarity before but I'm now satisfied that the health board was responding in a planned way to what was a major incident.