A BARMAN from Ulverston who coughed up blood after choking on a piece of beef has received an apology from an NHS Trust after he had to wait 50 minutes for an ambulance.

Curtis King, 34, from Ulverston, was enjoying a roast dinner at the Miners Arms in Swarthmoor on Sunday November 27 with owners Stuart and Lynne Ward when a piece of beef suddenly got stuck in his throat.

As the situation worsened in front of concerned customers, Mr Ward phoned 999 at 4:58pm and was directed to a call centre in Manchester who told him that the ambulance would have to come from Sedbergh, which is more than 35 miles away from Swarthmoor.

Mr King said: "I was coughing up blood because I just couldn't swallow. It was quite scary especially for people around me.

"I felt like I could breathe but my head was telling me different and I had to keep spitting out saliva."

When paramedics did arrive at 5:48pm, Mr King was then taken to A&E at Furness General Hospital, but was then told that the ear, nose and throat surgeon was in Lancaster.

The following day, an operation had to be performed under general anaesthetic to remove the piece of beef from his throat.

Mr Ward, who performed the Heimlich Manoeuvre on Mr King, was never told over the phone how long the ambulance would be and was therefore reluctant to take Mr King to Furness General Hospital in his car.

The barman feels fortunate that he suffered no long-term damage from choking, but is concerned at how long it took for an ambulance to arrive.

He added: "It's a scary thought and it could have been a lot worse if I hadn't had people around to help me out. If I had been on my own or gone into shock it could have been a completely different story."

North West Ambulance Service have since apologised for Mr King's long wait.

A spokesperson said: "The Trust would like to offer its sincerest apologies to the patient and wish him a speedy recovery.

“At the time, we were experiencing a high volume of our highest priority ‘Red’ calls in the area, which meant we were unable to respond as quickly as we would have liked.

"As soon as an ambulance became available it was dispatched to this incident. As in all cases, the nearest available resource was sent."