Ambulance response times in the South West are the longest in the country.

The South Western Ambulance Service (SWASFT) which covers the South Hams says longer waiting times are being caused by handover delays, when patients are transferred from paramedics to hospital staff.

SWASFT’s response times for life-threatening and emergency incidents last month were found to be the slowest of any ambulance service in the country.

It says it is now under "the most sustained period of pressure in its history".

Chief Executive of SWASFT Will Warrender said: "The real thing that has changed and is having a crippling impact on our ability to perform as a service, is our ability to get our patients into hospital as quickly as possible.

Will said: "Two years ago, on an average week, we would lose about 400 hours in handover delays.

"On Tuesday 19 October, one single day, we lost 900 hours. I think that says it all."

With COVID rates continuing to rise, Derriford Hospital in Plymouth is making extra space for Covid patients will 55 beds set aside for the purpose.

Five new patients with Covid are being admitted every day and the region has the highest rate of cases in the country,

Derriford’s CEO Kevin Baber said: "The emergency department has been under pretty much sustained pressure for a prolonged period of time.

"In the last 24 hours, we had over 320 patients attend and over 100 of those were brought by ambulance.

"As a consequence of that, some patients have experienced really long delays and we are very sorry for that.”

People are being asked to ring 111 before turning up at hospital and also to collect relatives and friends who have been discharged to free up beds.