Former Strictly star Greg Rutherford rushed to hospital ‘clawing at his skin’ and ‘screaming in pain’
GREG Rutherford’s panicked wife has told how she ran red lights to rush him to hospital as she feared for his life.
The former Strictly Come Dancing star was “clawing at his skin” and “screaming in pain” after apparently suffering a sudden allergic reaction.
His wife Susie Verrill detailed their nightmare day yesterday, which saw Greg “act delirious” before being pumped full of steroids and antihistamines.
She feared the ex-Olympian and MasterChef contestant would “stop breathing” during the terrifying ordeal.
Susie – who was told they’d have to wait 40 minutes for an ambulance – raced her husband to hospital, despite only passing her driving test three months ago.
She told her Instagram followers: “Had quite literally the scariest time of my life yesterday.
“Was enjoying a lovely roast at a friends’ house with the kids, Greg was at home because he’d been for a run and he text to say he was having an allergic reaction to something and felt itchy.
“I didn’t think much of it until he rang me screaming two minutes later. And I mean SCREAMING.
“He shouted ‘YOU NEED TO GET HERE NOW’ and so I drove back to our house while calling an ambulance, terrified I was about to get home and find him not breathing.
“999 said it would take 40 minutes, but that’s another issue to discuss for another day. Anyway I ran in the house found Greg there again, screaming.
“Acting like one of those people you see in videos where they’ve taken bath salts.
“He was clawing at his skin and just screaming. Repeatedly.
“He ran to our car and while I rang 999 again to say I’d have to take him, we had to run every red light and I had to focus on not crashing while he screamed and tried to grab the wheel.
“He was delirious and I looked like I was kidnapping him.
“I was on the phone to the 999 call handler and the poor girl just kep saying, ‘OK, yeah he doesn’t sound good, please be safe but hurry'”
She added: “I threw him out at A&E, parked and when I got there they told me they’d sent him through to Resus – I think mainly because he was a 6ft 3 bloke acting like a psychopath and didn’t want to scare anyone.
“They pumped him full of steroids and antihistamines and it seemed to work pretty much immediately.
“Thankfully by the time I got there he’d stopped screaming and raking himself.”
Greg was discharged from hospital just three hours later without a definitive explanation to what happened.
The couple insist they didn’t “eat or drink anything different” to usual, but fear Greg has developed a sudden nut allergy.
Susie added: “The hospital recommended we get him tested, but said it could have also been rival.
“I appreciate rashes can appear with a viral illness, but his body went mad.
“The doctor who suggested the viral thing hadn’t seen how Greg had been on arrival.
“I can’t explain how much pain he was in. This is a bloke who shrugs off a grumbling appendix.”
She then asked followers to get in touch if they have experienced anything similar.
Blogger Susie met Greg back in 2012 and have three children together, Milo, Rex and Daphne.
The couple were due to marry earlier this year after postponing their big day during the pandemic.
But retired British track and field athlete admitted they cancelled after the death of a close family member.
They’ve been engaged since 2019.