Woman collapses after sinkhole ordeal, sparking ambulance review
A mother-of-six who was sent home by paramedics after plunging into a backyard sinkhole has collapsed and is now in hospital.
Christina Beaumont was hanging clothes in the Springvale south backyard when the ground gave way on Tuesday.
She fell three metres into the grass sinkhole, which was part-filled with water.
The 45-year-old was forced to tread water for around 20 minutes before she was rescued by emergency crews.
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Paramedics treated her at scene and, at the time, said she was not injured.
Just a few hours after paramedics left, Christina suffered a serious and delayed reaction.
Christina's husband, Dave, told Seven News: "She didn't look the best after the ordeal. She ended up collapsing on the floor and we had to call another ambulance."
Questions are now being asked of the paramedics who chose not to take her to hospital for an assessment.
"Even if a patient is saying 'I'm fine', I still think that under the circumstances maybe she should have just been taken to hospital for a check up," Dave said.
Suffering hypothermia and a heart blockage, Christina will now spend the next three days under observation at the Monash Hospital.
In a statement, Ambulance Victoria said it was a conducting a review into why Mrs Beaumont was not taken to hospital immediately after yesterday's incident.
