The family of a man who is in a coma in hospital with severe burns has strongly criticised an ambulance service for taking an hour and a half to reach him. Company director Chris Williams-Ellis, 40, suffered 45% burns to his body in the blaze at his home near Corwen, Denbighshire, north Wales. His partner, Catherine Stewart, who pulled him from the flames, said she was shocked at how long it took for an ambulance to arrive. “Chris was shaking and white and his skin was hanging off his hands,” she said. “He was screaming with the pain. But I waited and waited and waited.” Williams-Ellis was eventually airlifted to hospital by the Welsh air ambulance, which is run by a charity, and was put into an induced coma. He remains in intensive care in a hospital in Manchester. The Welsh ambulance service has apologised for the “unacceptable delay” and is investigating. Williams-Ellis, who imports classic American cars, was in a mechanic’s pit in a barn at his home on the afternoon of 8 September when a vehicle he was working beneath caught fire. Stewart dashed into the flames and managed to haul him out. She suffered minor injuries and smoke inhalation but dialled 999 at 2.50pm. “I asked for an ambulance and told them: ‘He’s on fire, he can’t breathe’”, said Stewart. Twenty-five minutes later, at 3.15pm, a fire crew arrived. “I asked where the ambulance was,” said Stewart. “But they said they had not been told there was a casualty and they didn’t have the training to deal with burns victims.” She added: “ I couldn’t believe they weren’t aware there was a casualty. I couldn’t understand why there was no ambulance and the firefighters couldn’t understand it either. “The firefighters tried their best to help me but didn’t seem to know what to do with someone who was badly burned.” Eventually, one of the firefighters rang the Welsh air ambulance service directly and a helicopter was scrambled. The helicopter arrived at 4.17pm – just as an ambulance got to Williams-Ellis’s home. He was flown by air ambulance to a burns unit in Merseyside. Williams-Ellis developed pneumonia and was transferred to Wythenshawe hospital, Manchester, where he remains. Williams-Ellis’s mother, Philomène Williams-Ellis, said she wanted members of the Wales ambulance service NHS trust (WAST) to be held accountable. She said: “People ring 999, request an ambulance and wait expecting it to arrive and help. My son has been failed. He is alive due to Catherine, Welsh air ambulance crew and two hospitals. The ambulance service left my child in agony and dying.” Jason Killens, the chief executive at the Welsh ambulance service, said: “We know this will be a profoundly upsetting time for the family of Mr Williams-Ellis, and the thoughts of everyone at the ambulance service are with them. “Given the very serious nature of what happened, an investigation to determine the exact sequence of events and the cause of the unacceptable delay – for which we are very sorry – is being prioritised and concluded as swiftly as possible. “We are an organisation committed to learning and improvement, and have offered to meet the Williams-Ellis family to take them through our findings and any lessons identified in full. Our thoughts remain with Mr Williams-Ellis and his family at this deeply distressing time.”