20 Sep 2023
London’s Air Ambulance’s Dr Benjamin Marriage and Paramedics Chris Doyle and Kevin Cuddon have won The Sun’s Who Cares Wins ‘999 hero’ award.
The Sun’s Who Cares Wins Awards, in partnership with NHS Charities Together, celebrate healthcare heroes who have gone above and beyond to provide care to others.
The awards ceremony, hosted by Davina McCall and attended by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, Sir Keir Starmer and many a celebrity, showcased nominees in 11 different categories. It was London’s Air Ambulance’s ex-patient, Sarah de Lagarde, who nominated our three medics for the 999 hero category.
On 30 September 2022, Sarah lost her footing at a London tube station and fell through the gap between the train and platform. The train departed and another one arrived – Sarah suffered severe injuries at the scene and London’s Air Ambulance was immediately dispatched to provide on-scene, pre-hospital care.
As a result of the accident, Sarah lost both her right arm and leg.
Kevin Cuddon said: "Sarah was trapped in a very awkward position so I crawled under the train to help the London Fire Brigade get her out. We had to carry her about 30m under the train and put her on a device to lift her up to the platform. Her right foot had been amputated at the ankle and her right arm was separated from the shoulder. She was really quiet, pale and had lost a lot of blood.”
With inspirational dedication and hard work, Sarah has adapted and become the first person in the world to operate a new AI bionic arm that can read her mind, while using a prosthetic leg too.
Sarah said:
“These men are true heroes. The fact that I am here and alive and able to watch my children grow up is amazing. I owe these three incredible men my life."
Accepting the award from James Corden at the ceremony, Dr Benjamin Marriage said: “We would like to dedicate this award both to Sarah and everyone else involved in trauma care.”
Kevin Cuddon said: “We were really just doing our jobs. Sarah is the true hero. She is here, living life, enjoying life and not only that, she has been busy raising money for London’s Air Ambulance Charity.”
We’re thrilled our medics have won the 999 hero award and thank Sarah for the nomination.
The day after the ceremony, Dr Benjamin Marriage joined the Chris Evans Breakfast Show to talk about being a joint-recipient of the 999 Hero award. You can listen to their conversation here. Also on the morning after, Paramedic Kevin Cuddon’s daughter was born! We wish his family and their new addition all the best.
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