A pensioner who died in the street was left lying there for two hours, a friend of his has claimed. Ken Barlow, 69, collapsed in the street in Knighton, Powys, mid-Wales shortly after meeting friends for a bowls game.
His friend Brian Dolman found him and called an ambulance, which he said took more than 30 minutes to arrive.
He claims Mr Barlow, who he believes died of a heart attack, was left lying on the street until 2345 BST on the evening of 30 July.
An ambulance service spokesman said the case was "unusual" and that crews had left the body, as they were told undertakers were arriving to remove it.
The ambulance service said its control room was informed at 2234 BST that Mr Barlow had been certified dead. It said he was not taken from the scene because an undertaker had already been called.
 |  This was a very unusual set of circumstances  |
Mr Dolman found Mr Barlow just minutes after the pair had a meal together after the bowls game.
"I tried to keep him alive for about 20 minutes," said Mr Dolman, landlord of Knighton's Horse and Jockey pub.
Mr Dolman realised he could no longer feel a pulse before the ambulance arrived, he said.
George Murphy, regional ambulance officer for the South East region of the Welsh Ambulance Service, said the situation was unusual.
Ambulances based at Knighton and nearby Llandrindod Wells had already been called to emergencies, he said, which was rare in such a rural area. The Newtown-based ambulance reached the scene 34 minutes after being called.
"This was a very unusual set of circumstances," said Mr Murphy.
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