Family tells Frazer Irvine inquest of devastation at loss of son

BBC News

2 days ago

A family has been left "devastated" by the death of a man who died while two Jersey ambulance workers were at his home, the man's mother has told an inquest.The inquest into the death of Frazer Irvine, 39, who died after he called 999 and had a heart attack on 18 March 2022, started on Tuesday.Reading from a written description, his mother Linda Irvine told the hearing that her kind, generous son was a "beautiful soul" who always saw the best in people and never had a bad word to say about anyone.The inquest, due to conclude on Friday, continues.
'Beautiful soul'
Paramedic John Sutherland and ambulance technician Tom Le Sauteur were previously found guilty of failing to take reasonable care of Mr Irvine the night he died. That verdict was upheld at an appeal hearing.At the inquest, coroner Bridget Dolan KC started proceedings by inviting the family to tell the hearing about the man and son Mr Irvine was.Mrs Irvine told the hearing her son was a popular child who could "charm the monkeys out the trees". She said he grew into a loving and dependable adult with a natural wit; he loved music and nature, which was why he chose to pursue a career as a tree surgeon, she added.She said her son struggled with anxiety after a deceitful relationship in his early 20s ended badly, impacting him and the family.He was a man with a confident exterior but he could be easily hurt, Mrs Irvine said.She said that, while his passing had devastated the family, Mr Irvine was too big a personality to ever be forgotten.She said what had been hard was that, while her son was always the first to offer help, when he asked for it the "people charged to do so couldn't treat him like the kind human being he was until it was too late".She said she hoped that in her son's last moments, when he was "abandoned" on a stairwell, he knew how much he was loved.