Durban - The owner of the popular Midlands restaurant Piggly Wiggly has denied claims that his wife chased an ambulance away because it damaged the grass, saying a restaurant-goer misunderstood what was happening at the time.
The well-known country-style eatery came under fire on social media, with a number of customers claiming they would boycott the restaurant and craft market.
The Piggly Wiggly owner allegedly screamed at an ambulance service to move off the grass when they arrived to attend to a customer who had fallen ill while at the restaurant on Christmas Eve.
Loshini Lawrence posted this video on her Facebook timeline.
Restaurant reviewer on Google Michelle Manicum claimed that a customer had suffered a heart attack and when the ambulance service arrived, they parked on the grass.
“An old man had a heart attack and an ambulance was called to assist. They arrived and one of the paramedics disembarked and guided the driver toward the patient.
“Well, this lady threw a hissy fit! Screaming at them for entering her property with their vehicle and killing her grass!
“She prevented them from checking on the patient until they moved the vehicle! It was such disgusting behaviour,” Manicum wrote in her review.
Her review has gone viral on social media, with many threatening to stop visiting the restaurant.
Loshini Lawrence, commenting on Facebook, said it was her dad who had the heart attack. She described the owner’s behaviour as “awful to say the least”.
She claimed that her father had been treated “at the back near the toilets on a pile of wood”.
“She did not bother to offer a clean space or her office. He had to undergo a series of tests before being taken to Midlands hospital,” she wrote.
Piggly Wiggly owner Rudi Kassier there were no bad-intentions on his wife’s part and she did not prevent the ambulance or medics from performing their duties.
He said the ambulance had driven to the grassy area, which is in the middle of the public pedestrian area where lots of children were playing.
“My wife, being a very caring mother, was extremely concerned at the situation and the safety of the children. She then asked the driver and others around what the problem was. A young lady then said that her father, who was ill, had just gone to the ablutions.
“My wife then explained that if we had been notified we could have arranged a safe entry other than entering the area where children were playing,” Kassier said.
He added that the man had not had a heart attack at the facility as a doctor on site had told him that the man had had a heart attack a week ago, but had been advised to call the ambulance as a precaution.
“After the ambulance had left and the paramedic walked past my wife to his car, she concernedly asked him how the patient was and the reply was: ‘It’s none of your business.’
“My wife followed the paramedic to tell him that he was impolite. This is when the family members then came and said they would put this on social media,” Kassier said.