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15
Jan 2021
Ripon couple saved as tree falls in heavy snow
Two couples from Ripon were caught up in unexpected drama yesterday when a tree fell under the weight of snow.
Nicole Bond and her partner Ben Crewe were walking near College Lawns, just off Palace Road, yesterday lunchtime when they heard a cracking noise.
Assuming it was pallets being broken up on the nearby business park, they thought nothing of it - but seconds later realised what was happening. Nicole said:
As soon as the snow settled again, Nicole realised how big the tree was - and the damage it could have done.
Very quickly, Ben managed to reach the couple. The woman was shaken but didn't seem badly hurt, but her husband had a head injury that was bleeding.
Ben and Nicole used their clothes to apply pressure and stop the bleeding, following instructions from the call handlers on the phone.
They were warned that, thanks to the road conditions, it could take 40 minutes for an ambulance to arrive - but it only took around five minutes before paramedics were on the scene. They treated the injured couple before taking them to hospital for further assessment.
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Nicole has since been contacted by the woman to say they are both recovering, her husband having been treated for concussion, and to thank her and Ben for their help on the scene.
It was only chance they were all in the wrong place at the wrong time: Nicole and Ben took a different route for their usual dog walk because of flooding. Having spent the morning helping drivers make their way along snowy roads near home, they had just paused to take a video of the road conditions in the area - and a few seconds more or less could have made all the difference to how the incident played out.
Nicole added:
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