Family of man killed in crash feel 'let down' by ambulance service

Kyle Goater, a mechanical engineer from Keighley, died on July 20, 2021, when his MG ZS collided with two other vehicles on Moor Road, Burley in Wharfedale.

The 25-year-old, who was driving home from work, suffered serious injuries and later died at the scene.

Yorkshire Ambulance Service pledged to "learn from this".

Mr Goater's inquest - which concluded at Bradford Coroners' Court this week - heard the ambulance service answered the first call about the incident at 4.59pm, but crews did not arrive at the crash site until 6.07pm.

Mr Goater had gone into cardiac arrest at 5.59pm and he was sadly pronounced dead at 6.58pm.

The inquest was told Yorkshire Ambulance Service had nearby resources available at 5.34pm - but these were not deployed at the time.

Assistant coroner Angela Brocklehurst said: "This had critical consequences.

"Yorkshire Ambulance Service, by failure to deploy available resources at 5.34pm on that day, lost an opportunity to save the life of Kyle," added Ms Brocklehurst, who recorded a narrative conclusion setting out the facts of the case.

Following the inquest, Mr Goater's parents, Andrew and Samantha, told the T&A of their devastation - and paid tribute to their "amazing" son.

"We have been let down by the ambulance service," they said.

"If they had allocated and dispatched an ambulance in time, Kyle should be alive today."

The inquest heard Mr Goater was initially talking and reacting after the collision - but he then began to complain of chest pains and his breathing became shallow.

His parents raised concerns that the incident was initially classed as category three - before being upgraded to a more serious category two.

According to NHS England, category two calls should be responded to in an average time of 18 minutes.

"We want urgent changes to be made - no other family should have to go through this," his parents said. 

A spokesperson for Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust told the T&A: "First and foremost, we would like to express our sympathy to the family and friends of Kyle Goater following his death in July 2021 after a road traffic collision.

"The trust contributed fully to the coroner's inquest and acknowledges the error made in dispatching an ambulance to the incident.

"We are committed to learning from this. 

"Our thoughts remain with Kyle's family."

Mr Goater's parents said they wanted an apology in writing from the ambulance service. 

'Our lives will never be the same again'

Paying tribute, Mr Goater's parents said: "Kyle was a beautiful, caring, funny, loving young man who had the most wonderful personality and the cheekiest smile.

"He was an outgoing, confident man - an amazing character with so many friends.

"He was and still is a very much-loved, cherished son and brother.

"We are totally devastated and heartbroken following the tragic loss of Kyle.

"Our lives will never be the same again.

Kyle aged three-and-a-half (Image: Family)

"To explain our loss is the unthinkable - there simply are no words.

"Kyle was taken far too soon.

"He had a wonderful lifetime in front of him.

"He adored his family and his family adored him.

"He is very sadly missed."

They added that they wanted to thank the police for their response to the incident.

Kyle - who loved cars and fixing things - worked at Ilkley-based Olicana Products Ltd.

After he died, Hadleighson Standing, production manager at the firm, said: "It has come as a massive shock to us all - it is tragic.

"He was a well-respected member of the team.

"He was a great lad.

"He has worked here for about six years - we saw him grow from a boy to a man.

"It is a really tight team here - Kyle blended in with everybody.

"He enjoyed his cars and was a great engineer.

"He was very technically astute, just a good all-round guy.

"We miss him immensely."

Bunches of flowers with emotional messages and tributes were also left on Moor Road, which is between Ilkley and Menston, after the tragedy.