An ambulance technician was left with a burning pain and unable to open her eyes after a lazer was shone into her face as she responded to a serious incident.

The North West Ambulance Service has condemned the "vile attack" on the emergency medical technician, who is based in Carlisle.

The technician, who wishes to remain anonymous, was heading with her crew partner to an incident where a patient was struggling to breathe.

She suddenly saw a green light being shone into the cab, before everything went black.

She was able to pull the vehicle over, avoiding what the NWAS said could have been a serious accident.

As a result, she was left with a burning pain and was unable to open her eyes. The technician was taken to A&E where she was treated by doctors.

She has since made a full recovery.

In 2016, NWAS said that 413 incidents of physical abuse towards staff were recorded, 20 of which took place in Cumbria - a 25 per cent increase on the previous year.

Christine Jones, operations manager for the North West Ambulance Service, said: “I am shocked and appalled that somebody has done such a cruel and dangerous thing to a member of our staff who was travelling at speed to help a patient in need.

"Not only could this have caused a huge road accident, it could have also lost precious minutes for a patient in dire need.

"Thankfully nobody else was injured and no lasting damage has been done but it could have been a lot worse.”

"Incidents of this nature are taken extremely seriously and are very traumatic for our staff. They are offered a great deal of support from the trust, both physically and mentally but we do urge people to be respectful and please remember that we are here to help.”