It is very rare that I feel moved to comment on news items twice in two weeks, but one story has reaffirmed something on which I have commented on several times in the past.

The reduction in our ­ambulance cover goes back even to 1974, when I joined the Kingsbridge ambulance station. In those halcyon days we enjoyed three fully manned and equipped ambulances, while a little later a ‘day case vehicle’ was added.

Even then there were ­occasions when the number of emergency cases outstripped our capacity. One of the Kingsbridge vehicles and crew were often called into Plymouth to help with the workload there.

On more occasions than I care to remember, we were called to answer an emergency in the Kingsbridge area as there was “no cover here”. I protested then and was told not to make waves and to think of my job. Forty three years on and it is far worse.

Having now been retired for many years, I have watched our emergency cover being reduced to a point where an injured car accident victim has to wait two hours before being transported to hospital. Were it not for our dedicated police officers and off-duty medical personnel, the victim’s suffering and condition may well have worsened. Administrators in the Ambulance Trust are quick to point to statistics and excuse themselves of any blame, but to those of us who know the truth it really is ­hogwash.

The requirement to save money and resources is understood, but so is the need to respond, treat and transport to hospital those who call for help. That is why ambulance services were developed.

One ambulance and crew in Kingsbridge, Totnes and Dartmouth is not only insufficient, it is downright dangerous, and once again demonstrates how the South West Ambulance Trust will look after Plymouth and other cities at the expense of the South Hams and other rural areas.

Ambulance response times to 999 calls are often fudged by the dispatch of a volunteer first responder who can render first aid, as would St John, but who does not have the skill of a ­qualified ambulance para-medic/technician, with their attendant modern equipment. Neither can they transport the patient to more advanced help in hospital.

It does, however, allow Ambulance Control to ‘tick the box’ that the 999 call has been responded to within the ­governmental guidelines.

The Ambulance Trust’s reply to a previous complaint about poor response was to quote a “computer model” that it used to allocate emergency vehicles. More hogwash.

During my 20-year service, we used to urge people to ­complain about waiting times, but few did, believing that in some way they were casting aspersions on the ambulance crews. This was never the case – we felt as angry and helpless as the patients we served.

Please, please people of the South Hams, wake up: ­complain to not only the South West Ambulance Trust, but our MP, before we lose even the very poor cover we have now. And pray it is not your loved one or friend who dies because of our not having adequate emergency cover.

John Peacock

Kenwith Drive

Kingsbridge