Girl, 6, chokes to death on grape on holiday in Wales
The heartbroken parents of a girl who died after choking on a grape on a holiday in Wales have spoken out about the tragedy.
Robert and Kathleen Lapsley, from Anfield, say they have been left devastated by the loss of their six-year-old daughter Jasmine.
The family were enjoying a holiday in Morfa Nefyn on the Llyn Peninsula in August when the incident occurred.
According to the the Liverpool Echo, Kathleen gave an interview with Wales This Week to be broadcast on ITV Cymru Wales. She said: "She was sitting down at the table, behaving and playing cards. She turned around and I could see that she was choking.
"I'd just given her the grapes and she was choking on a grape, I didn't doubt what it was."
The couple instantly called an ambulance, and tried themselves, along with neighbours and passing fire crew, to dislodge the grape, to no avail.
The couple has now hit out at the Welsh Ambulance Service, saying it took half an hour for help to arrive.
Robert said: "It took them half an hour to get an appropriate response there.
"The first responders, it wouldn't have made a difference if they'd taken five minutes, 10 minutes or 25 minutes - it wasn't what Jasmine needed. They were unable to help.
"She needed the paramedic... And it took them half an hour to get that paramedic to us."
Jasmine was taken by helicopter to Bangor's Ysbyty Gwynedd hospital, where her parents were initially told she still had a pulse, but she later died.
Kathleen says the couple are now in a living "nightmare".
According to the Mirror, acting chief executive of the Welsh Ambulance Service Trust Tracy Myhill admits there's a "cloud" over the service, which has failed to meet its target of reaching at least 65% of priority calls with 8 minutes.
She said the service "unreservedly apologised" to the Lapsleys for the "undoubted trauma" they had suffered. But the Lapsleys claim they have had no contact from the service.
In a statement, the Welsh Ambulance Trust told the Daily Post: "We do not routinely make direct contact with bereaved families but will try to maintain lines of communications so when families are at a point where they wish to contact the Trust, we can and will act promptly."
"The Trust has reported this tragic incident to the Welsh Government as a Serious Adverse Incident . These reports require a comprehensive and detailed investigation, and the Trust endeavours to complete the investigation by mid to late November."
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