County Championship cricket match in Bristol stopped as air ambulance lands on pitch

A picture of the air ambulance on the field at the Bristol County Ground. Credit: Gloucestershire Cricket / Twitter

A professional cricket match in Bristol was temporarily halted after an air ambulance landed on the pitch to treat a patient.

Gloucestershire were playing against Durham at the Bristol County Ground when the helicopter landed around 10.45am.

Players from the two sides had to be sent off while the incident was dealt with.

Great Western Air Ambulance (GWAAC) said a patient had fallen over and suffered a head injury nearby.

“The team were on the way back to their air base after responding to another call-out in Bridgwater, with a critical care doctor and two specialist paramedics on board, so landed at the nearby Bristol County Grounds in order to get to the patient quickly,” a GWAAC spokesperson said.

“They assisted the patient on scene, who was then taken to hospital in a land ambulance for further care. 

“We would like to apologise for the inconvenience caused to all those at the cricket grounds and thank them for their cooperation in allowing our crew to land safely and respond to the patient in need.”

The arrival happened as Gloucestershire were bowling in the first over of the match.