Wife had to direct ambulance driver to nearest A&E as husband lay dying

Ms Morris holds the picture up for the photographer
Samantha Morris with a picture of her late husband Aaron, who died in a motorbike accident in 2022 - Claire McKie/NCJ Media

A wife had to direct an ambulance driver to a hospital while her husband was in cardiac arrest, an inquest has heard.

Samantha Morris was 13 weeks pregnant with twins when her husband Aaron Morris, 31, was involved in a motorbike crash on her birthday.

During the ambulance journey to the hospital, Ms Morris said, she had to give directions to the nearest trauma centre because the driver did not know where it was.

In July 2022, Ms Morris had been on her way to meet her husband after making an overnight stay in hospital when she found him lying in the road after a crash on his motorbike.

The coroner heard he had collided with a car at a junction in Esh Winning, County Durham, but was still conscious and breathing when Ms Morris arrived moments later.

However, Mr Morris’s condition deteriorated in the 54 minutes they had to wait before an ambulance arrived. He died shortly after arriving at the University Hospital of North Durham.

The pair pose together in a holiday snap with a blue sea behind them
Ms Morris was pregnant with the couple’s twins when her husband died - NCJ Media

The inquest heard that several attempts to call for an ambulance were made on the day of the crash but it wasn’t until 54 minutes later that third-party ambulance company Ambulanz arrived.

Ambulanz is a private firm which was supporting the North East Ambulance Service and sent to the scene by 999.

Ms Morris said the driver was on his way to Newcastle’s Royal Victoria Infirmary (RVI) but asked her where the nearest trauma centre was, at which point her husband went into cardiac arrest in the back of the vehicle. She directed him to the nearest hospital.

“I was 13 weeks pregnant and my husband was having CPR in the back of the ambulance,” Ms Morris told the inquest.

“Why should I make the decision on what hospital my husband should be taken to? I have to live with the fact that if I said the RVI he might still be alive to this day.”

No blame for driver

Ms Morris said she didn’t fault the driver for the incident, but added: “My fault in that is the people who manage and train him should have given him the tools to know where the nearest hospital is.

“He made the right decision that day by using what he had, which was me who lives in the local area.”

Aaron’s inquest first opened in May and was later adjourned after the coroner identified the Great North Air Ambulance Service as a party of interest.

Two officers from Durham Constabulary who attended the crash site were the first to give evidence on Tuesday, including Det Con Rebecca Shaw, who told the hearing she was the first officer on scene.

She was off-duty at the time and driving in the area when she was diverted around the collision by members of the public. She stopped her car after she saw Mr Morris’s body and made several calls to 999.

The inquest continues.