A WOMAN has had an emotional reunion with the paramedic who saved her unborn baby after a head-on car crash.

Amy Louise Appleyard, who was six-months pregnant at the time, was driving to work for her last shift before she took maternity leave when the collision happened near Darlington on August 9 last year.

Ms Appleyard, who has recently moved to Hull from Darlington, had nearly arrived at her work at the Raby Hunt Inn, in Summerhouses, when the collision happened and her car spun round.

The 23-year-old said: “It was my very last day at the restaurant before maternity leave and I had been to the shops for work, so I arrived later than I normally would.

"I tried to get out of the vehicle but as I did, I fell out. I can’t remember a lot apart from blurred faces and voices.

“Colleagues ran out to help and an ex-policeman stopped and wrapped me up in a blanket. A rapid response paramedic came and soon after the Great North Air Ambulance arrived.”

The GNAAS crew assessed and treated Ms Appleyard before she was airlifted to James Cook University Hospital, in Middlesbrough, in seven minutes where it was found she only suffered minor injuries.

Last week she met GNAAS paramedic Andy Mawson, who was on board the aircraft at the time.

Ms Appleyard, whose daughter Eva-Rose, is now eight-months-old, said: “When I look at her, I feel so lucky. I don’t have the words to say how grateful I am that they saved me and my baby.

“Not a day goes by when I don’t think about what happened."

Paramedic Andy Mawson said: “It is always a huge concern when a pregnant lady is involved in an incident so it was a great relief to hear that they were both fine.

"It’s been absolutely fantastic to see them again today.”