A woman who suffered a heart attack in an Aberystwyth town centre shop was reportedly left to lie on the floor for three hours waiting for an ambulance.

The woman was in the Treehouse organic food store in Baker Street when she suffered the heart attack as she was about to go upstairs to the restaurant.

The manager of the nearby Spar store in Terrace Road rushed over with a defibrillator but did not have to use it.

Morganne Goodman, of the Treehouse, said they had to close the shop to ensure the woman was kept comfortable.

Warning that the situation on 26 March could have been much worse, she added: “The lady was waiting for three hours. Her family came and told us she was stable and improving, but we dread to think what could have happened.

“The shop was kept closed for the lady’s privacy and comfort.

“We sustained loss of earnings and excess wages charges as an additional consequence of the lengthy wait for the poor woman’s health care.”

A Welsh Ambulance Service spokesperson said: “We are grateful that this matter has been brought to our attention and we would encourage the patient or their family to contact us so we can investigate further.

“We are always appreciative of bystander intervention and we would like to thank the members of the public that came to the aid of this patient.”

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