AN ELDERLY woman who suffered a fall was lying in a road for over three hours before an ambulance could arrive and take her to hospital.

Margaret Stark, 82, from Bournemouth, was walking to allotments off Cornelia Road with her husband, Mike, when they both fell over.

Several people nearby rushed to the couple’s aid and were able to help Mr Stark up, but were unable to move Mrs Stark who had fallen onto her back and hit her head.

A police community support officer called 999, while others tried to make her comfortable.

One person helped direct traffic around Mrs Stark, whose head and upper torso were in the road.

“It was awful,” she said.

“I’ve never had a fall like this. I was on my back in the road. They were afraid to move me because of my spine. After a while, I was getting upset because I needed to go to the toilet. It was horrible. People were getting worried while waiting for the ambulance to arrive.”

Mrs Stark has praised everyone who helped her through her ordeal, including one man who stayed with her for the whole three-hour wait.

When it started to rain, a resident fetched an umbrella and held it over her.

“The community spirit was really lovely – around eight people helped,” she said.

“When the ambulance crew came, they were full of apologies. They moved me so gently – it wasn’t easy.”

Mrs Stark said she was “amazed” she did not suffer any serious injuries – only bruising and headaches.

Bournemouth councillor Susan Phillips said there was “a need for more resources”.

“I’m a very passionate champion for the elderly, and I would cherish seeing an improvement. I will be bringing this to the attention of various agencies who work together with the town hall to ask them if there is anything that can be done to improve the situation.”

She added: “The public need to be aware how important it is to ring back if there is any deterioration in the patient’s condition. The caller needs to be clear and answer all the questions clearly so it can be triaged correctly.”

A spokesperson for South Western Ambulance Service said there were 16 life-threatening incidents being attended to in the Bournemouth area at the time of Mrs Stark’s fall.

“We received a call at 11.14 reporting that a female had fallen. This was triaged as a Category 3 response, which means not immediately life-threatening. The patient was reported to be conscious and breathing with no serious bleeding.

“The patient was treated at the scene and then taken to Poole Hospital. We have a finite number of vehicles available to respond and will always prioritise life-threatening incidents.”