Ambulance crew forced to hide in house in Hull after attack

Paramedic Laura Major tweeted an image of the damage to her ambulance

Two paramedics had to lock themselves in a house in Hull after their ambulance came under attack.

One of the crew, Laura Major, described the incident on Friday as "my most frightening shift at work".

Humberside Police said a 32-year-old man had been arrested on suspicion of affray and criminal damage.

Figures from Yorkshire Ambulance Service (YAS) show assaults against paramedics have more than doubled over the past five years.

In a tweet Ms Major said the house in which they were sheltering also came under attack while the crew waited for police to arrive.

"Last night was my most frightening shift at work," she said.

"Our vehicle was attacked whilst we locked ourselves inside a property. The house was also attacked whilst we waited. I have never been so relieved to see the police.

"We do not come to work to be treated like this!"

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Figures from YAS show that physical assaults against its staff have risen from 110 between 2013 and 2014, to 221 attacks between April 2018 and January 2019.

YAS said its staff were "subjected to threats and their ambulance was damaged" while they were treating a patient in the early hours of Friday.

In a statement, the trust said: "We wholeheartedly empathise with the two colleagues who were the victims of this frightening incident and support has been provided to them.

"We are shocked and very disappointed that our staff were threatened in this way and mindless damage was done to an ambulance which has now been made unavailable to respond to life-threatening emergencies while repairs are carried out."

Police said the arrested man had been "released pending further investigations".