London ambulance widow reunited with medic who saved husband's life

Medical technician Dave Townsend and ambulance crew member Ellie Taylor were chatting during their shift when their connection from 1999 dawned on them

A widow has been reunited by chance with the medic who saved her husband's life when the pair became ambulance crewmates working a shift together.

Ellie Taylor had searched for years for the man who treated her late husband Paul, a father of three, when he was hit by a drunk driver in 1999.

Two decades later, she was put on a shift with colleague Dave Townsend at London Ambulance Service (LAS).

Mrs Taylor, 53, of Hertfordshire, said it had given her "closure".

She first worked with Mr Townsend, an emergency medical technician, in October, when her usual colleague was self-isolating with Covid-19.

During their 12-hour shift, she began telling him that her taxi driver husband was left with life-changing brain damage from the incident.

'Some jobs stick with you'

Paul Taylor, pictured before the accident, spent the last 19 years of his life in a nursing home requiring 24-hour care

Mr Townsend, 61, from Royston, Hertfordshire, said he had immediately asked her: "Was he a black-cab driver and he had gone to get himself a kebab?"

He added: "Some jobs, they just always stick with you.

"I always did wonder what had happened to Paul after that night.

"We usually receive the coroner's report if a patient dies and because I didn't receive one I always hoped that he had recovered and went on to live a fulfilling life."

Mr Taylor was 37 when he was struck by a vehicle moments after buying food during a night shift.

He spent 19 years in a 24-hour care nursing home as a result of his injuries. He died last year, aged 58.

'Friends who are bonded'

The driver, who was over the drink-drive limit, was caught after leaving the scene and eventually jailed for nine months for dangerous driving.

Former healthcare assistant Mrs Taylor, of Hoddesdon, said she joined the LAS after being "inspired" by her husband's care.

"It's so bittersweet thinking about the moments that have been robbed from Paul, like seeing his three wonderful children grow up to get married and now having grandchildren," she added.

"That's been taken away from him and that can be heart-breaking thinking about that.

"By finally meeting Dave, I feel I have closure on that now.

"I have made a great friend - one I know I will keep forever. We are bonded in some sort of way."