The HSE has asked the National Ambulance Service to investigate after it was claimed no ambulance was available to help a toddler who fell from an upstairs window in Co Cork on Monday.
Vakaris Martinaltis, who would have celebrated his second birthday tomorrow, died on Wednesday from his injuries after the fall at his home in Castleredmond in Midleton.
Kevin Hennessy, Cork GAA player and a neighbour of the family, said he was told there was no ambulance available in the area when he called the emergency services at around 1pm on Monday.
Speaking on RTÉ Radio this morning, Mr Hennessy said an ambulance dispatcher asked whether they had their own transport and if they could take the child to SouthDoc.
“Their exact words were, ‘there is no ambulance in your area at the moment’,” he said.
The child was conscious and crying, but had a graze over his left eye and a swollen forehead, Mr Hennessy said.
“I knew it was serious,” he added.
Mr Hennessy brought the child to SouthDoc in Midleton, a five-minute drive away, where he was examined by a doctor who advised that he be taken to Cork University Hospital.
He said the traffic was heavy so he called the gardaí, who provided an escort to the hospital.
The boy died from his injuries at the hospital on Wednesday.
“I was shocked,” Mr Hennessy said. “You read all this in the paper about the HSE and the ambulance service, this happening all over the country, not just here, but when a tragedy happens like this it’s highlighted.”
A HSE spokesman said the National Ambulance Service has been requested to examine details of the incident and provide an account of the facts.
The spokesman offered the sympathies of the HSE to the family of the dead boy.
A Garda spokesman said the circumstances are being investigated and a file is being prepared for the coroner’s court.
