A north Devon man had to wait 45 minutes for an ambulance after his hand was severed in an accident.

Mike Rippon lost his hand following an incident at the Nexfor wood products factory in South Molton where he works as a drier operator.

An ambulance was called immediately, but the call was treated as non-life threatening.

That meant a crew was sent from Tiverton, more than 10 miles away, instead of from the nearest station at Barnstaple.

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The ambulance crew had trouble finding the factory, and by the time they arrived, 45 minutes had elapsed.

For such an emergency, an ambulance should have arrived within 19 minutes.

West Country Ambulance Trust is now considering an internal inquiry into the incident after a call for an investigation by North Devon MP Nick Harvey.

Surgeons at the Royal Devon and Exeter hospital say the delay did not affect the chances of Mr Rippon being able to regain use of his hand.

This week it was revealed that the trust had failed to reach its targets for turn-around times at the Royal Cornwall Hospital at Treliske.

The time it takes from delivering a patient to getting the ambulance back on the road should be 18 minutes.

But according to a report published by the trust, in some cases it is taking almost an hour.

Paramedics say more must be done at the hospital so ambulances can get back on the road quicker.