Paramedics taken ill on way to Hospital

2:04pm Monday 15th September 2008

Paramedics had to call for back up yesterday evening when they became unwell after collecting a welder who fell ill at the Chevron refinery.

The 35-year-old contract welder was taken to the refinery's medical centre shortly before 6pm. It is believed he became ill through inhaling welding fumes.

At 7.27pm an ambulance was called to take the worker from the medical centre, situated at the gates of the refinery, to Withybush Hospital.

En route to Withybush paramedics called for a second ambulance to take over the call, as they themselves were suffering from some physical discomfort.

A spokesman for the Welsh Ambulance Service said that they had suffered from similar symptoms to the welder, including itchy eyes and arms.

The second ambulance took the casualty to Withybush Hospital where he was kept in overnight and was expected to be released this morning (Monday).

The paramedics who had felt unwell were discharged later on Sunday evening.

A spokesman for Chevron said: "In line with company response procedures, the contractor was taken for initial treatment to the refinery’s on-site medical centre, from where he was later taken by ambulance to Withybush hospital.

" We are advised that his condition is related to the specific welding activity he was undertaking. The area where he was working was fully checked and no leaks or contamination were found, confirming the assessment that this was an isolated incident and was not the result of other activities in the area.  "We understand that the paramedics complained of experiencing some mild physical discomfort on the way to the hospital and, as a precaution, called for a second ambulance to take over"