The Royal Mail has launched an investigation into a postman after he refused to help a vulnerable 72-year-old pensioner lying in the snow after she fell and hit her head because he was ‘too knackered’.
Patricia Stewart, who suffers from the bone disease osteoporosis, slipped and banged her head as she bent over to pick up two parcels left on the doorstep of her home in Bainsford, near Falkirk.
She was unable to get up without help and was left lying in the snow as temperatures plummeted below freezing during the coldest February in Scotland since 1955.
But when the pensioner pleaded with her Royal Mail postman for help, he refused because he was too tired and walked away – even telling her to put on her slippers without helping her.
Shocking video captured on a neighbour’s Ring doorbell and posted to Facebook by Patricia’s niece Sheryl Harkins shows the postman saying: ‘I can’t help. I’m knackered. Absolutely knackered.’
Patricia was thankfully rescued by 22-year-old Hermes driver Karolina Domska 20 minutes later, who helped her up, got her inside her home and called her neighbours.
The 72-year-old pensioner has osteoporosis and has fallen over twice recently. Treatment for her condition, including scans and surgery, have been delayed due to the coronavirus lockdowns.
Speaking exclusively to MailOnline, Sheryl accused the Royal Mail postman, who has not yet been identified, left her aunt ‘to die’ in the snow.
The Royal Mail apologised to Patricia and her family, and revealed that they are probing the shocking incident.
Scotland is experiencing its coldest February since 1955, with Edinburgh recording -13C and Kinbrace a Baltic -21.2C last night. The joint record for the lowest temperature ever recorded in the UK is held by Braemar and Altnaharra, which have recorded -27.2C on three separate occasions.
Patricia Stewart 72 and her dog, Bengie a 13-year-old toy poodle
Shocking video shows the worker ignoring 72-year-old Patricia Stewart’s pleas for help after slipping outside her home in Falkirk, Scotland
Patricia Stewart with her Hermes heroine, 22-year-old Karolina Domska
Sheryl said: ‘The postman came to deliver mail. He left a couple of parcels on my aunt’s front step. She came out and bent down to pick them up.
‘She tumbled over and banged her head. She told him, ‘I haven’t been very well, could you help me up please?’
‘He said, ‘Listen, I can’t help you pal. I’m knackered. I’ve been up since nine this morning delivering mail in this weather.’ And he walked off.
‘I didn’t believe it when I was told what the postman had done until I saw the footage because nobody in their right mind would leave a 72-year old lady lying in a foot of snow.
‘It beggars belief that someone would treat another human being in this manner. He left her there to die.’
The postman, who has yet to be identified, also failed to alert neighbours to her plight as he carried on making his rounds.
Hermes delivery worker Karolina Domska arrived in the area 20 minutes later and provided the assistance the postman failed to deliver, staying with Patrica and calling for help from Pat’s neighbours.
Sheryl said: ‘It’s shocking. I’ve still not come to terms with it. The postman’s left my aunt feeling really quite worthless and upset. He couldn’t even help her.
‘It is very lucky that the Hermes lady turned up when she did 20 minutes later because my aunt could have lay there for three hours and, God forbid, froze to death because he left her there.
‘We appreciate he might not have wanted to touch my aunt and get her up but he then proceeded to deliver more mail through other letter boxes.
Patricia’s niece Sheryl, who has been looking after the pensioner, said she was helped inside by a Hermes worker a short time later who then called a neighbour for help
‘Why not just chap a neighbour’s door and say, ‘There’s a lady lying along there who has fallen and hurt her head. Can you call for help?’
‘That is the sensible thing to do. He is passing so many other doors. It beggars belief.
‘It was -9 in Falkirk and one of the coldest spells on record in Scotland. It was freezing. She had no jacket on. My aunt’s slippers had come off.
‘She’s lying there barefoot and as the postman walked away he said to her, ‘Put your slippers on’. She couldn’t put them on because she couldn’t get up.
‘It’s disgusting. You wouldn’t treat a dog like that and she could have died. He left her to die. That is the situation.’
Sheryl was not due to visit until three hours after the incident.
‘I am over four times a day. It happened at one in the afternoon and I wasn’t due to go over until four,’ she added.
‘She could have lain there for three hours and I’m pretty sure in that temperature after three hours she wouldn’t have been in a good situation.’
Patricia yesterday received an apology from a member of the Royal Mail management team after footage of the incident went viral.
Sheryl said: ‘A gentleman from the Royal Mail arrived yesterday, a manager of some sort. He apologised and asked if there was anything he could do, but I have no idea whether they will be back in touch or what’s going to happen.
Patricia fell over outside her home as Storm Darcy lashes Britain, with cold weather on the way
‘They have acknowledged the situation and he said they are investigating.’
She added: ‘We told the gentleman from the Royal Mail we don’t want that postman delivering mail to anyone ever again because what he did was disgusting.
‘I’ve contacted senior officers at Royal Mail because I’m not going to let this go. It is not acceptable what this guy has done and an apology is not good enough.
‘I would like the postman identified but some family members don’t want to know because of what he has done.
‘I would like to know who he is because I am friendly and chatty in the community. I’d hate to come across this chap in the future and be nice to him not knowing who he is.
‘We are the kind of community where we say hello to people and stop to chat but I wouldn’t want to be nice to him after what he’s done.’
A Royal Mail Spokesperson said: ‘Royal Mail expect the highest standards of behaviour from our people while out on deliveries and collections at all times. We regularly remind our postmen and postwomen of the important role they play in their local communities
‘We were very sorry to learn about this incident, and for the distress this incident has caused. We are in touch with the customer concerned and will be investigating this incident.’