A much-loved paramedic died while cutting down a large tree after it "fell onto him", an inquest heard. Robin Parry Jones, who was based at the ambulance station in Pwllheli, died on Thursday, June 23.
The inquest into his death was opened today in Caernarfon. It heard that Mr Jones, from Dinas, Pwllheli, had been at an acquaintance's property between Llanystumdwy and Criccieth cutting a large tree on the day of his death.
It is understood that he had been cutting the tree since the early morning. At approximately 9.40pm, somebody walking their dog discovered him "pinned underneath a large tree in the field".
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The emergency services attended, but sadly the father-of-two and grandfather-of-one was pronounced dead at the scene by a fellow paramedic. During the brief hearing on Wednesday (July 6), Katie Sutherland, acting senior coroner for North West Wales, said: "I ordered a post-mortem examination which was undertaken by Dr Mark Atkinson on June 29 with a provisional cause of death given as asphyxia.
"The inquest is hereby formally opened, and will be adjourned on the basis that it appears to have been a tree falling on to Mr Jones leading to the cause of his death. All circumstances are to be determined at the inquest which is now adjourned pending completion of further investigations."
Following his death, Mr Jones was described as a "proud grandfather" who was "much respected" within the community. He had joined the Welsh Ambulance Service in November 2000, starting his career with the trust’s non-emergency patient transport service. He qualified as a trainee ambulance technician in 2002 and a paramedic in 2005.
Jason Killens, chief executive of the Welsh Ambulance Service, paid tribute to the paramedic, saying: “Robin was a much-respected, loveable and happy-go-lucky person who was well known in the Pwllheli community.
"He was one of the original Community First Responder ‘champions’, a true advocate for volunteers who became an integral link between volunteers and local stations. In his spare time, Robin was a keen fisherman and a member of the local shooting community with fellow colleagues from Pwllheli.
“A proud grandfather, Robin also loved dogs and had started a local dog grooming service. The sudden and sad loss of Robin will be felt by all those that knew him, and we would like to extend our heartfelt condolences to Robin’s family, friends and colleagues at this difficult time.
“This will be an especially difficult time for operational colleagues in Pwllheli, who last year also lost paramedic Anthony Stephens, and in 2016, John Clift of the Non-Emergency Patient Transport Service. All of us at the Welsh Ambulance Service work every day to contribute to the effort of saving lives, but we can never be prepared enough when it comes to assisting the ones we are the closest to.”
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