Skip to content

Archives for ambulance-crash

See all posts in the network tagged with ambulance-crash

NY Paramedic Critical Following Head-On Crash

No comments

Not Running Emergency

A MOBILE LIFE AMBULANCE IN ULSTER COUNTY, New York, collided head-on with a pickup truck Saturday morning. 

Daily Freeman

The crash left the ambulance driver in critical condition.  He had to be extricated by the FD before being flown to Albany.  The other medic with him was treated at Kingston Hospital then transferred to Albany also.  The two passengers in the pickup were able to get out of the truck on their own and were also transported.

The accident occurred around 7 am on Rte. 32 near Bloomington.  The two vehicles were travelling in opposite directions and the ambulance was not on an emergency call when it happened.

From early reports, the police do not yet know what caused them to end up in the same lane.

The Daily Freeman provided some raw video from the scene:

 

The Times Herald-Record has the early STORY.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Posted by on May 18, 2013 • Filed under: ambulances, EMS Topics, Uncategorized, Vehicle Operation & Ambulances, Videos • Tagged: , ,

Ambulance Crash in Michigan

No comments

Not On Emergency Call

AN AMR AMBULANCE IN HOLLAND, Michigan, collided with an auto Friday evening and left three people injured, none seriously.

The victims in the car had to be extricated.  (WOOD-TV)

The ambulance was not on a call and didn't have any emergency lights activated when the car, according to unconfirmed reports, pulled into the ambulance's path.

Three people in the car were transported with minor injuries and the two EMT's were checked out on the scene.

WOOD-TV filed this video report:

 

Car crashes into ambulance in Holland

 

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Posted by on May 18, 2013 • Filed under: ambulances, EMS Topics, Vehicle Operation & Ambulances, Videos • Tagged: , ,

Semi- Rear-ends Oklahoma Ambulance

No comments

No Injuries

A PAFFORD AMBULANCE PARAMEDIC unit was involved in a highway crash Wednesday morning while it was responding to another collision near Tulsa, Oklahoma.

KOTV NewsOn6

The accident took place on the Will Rogers Turnpike near Claremore.

KOTV-Ch. 6 Tulsa reports:

A trooper told News On 6 the incident began with a single-vehicle wreck.

A car hydroplaned and hit the concrete barrier. The trooper says the Pafford ambulance was turning around in an opening in the barrier to reach the crashed car when it was rear-ended by a semi.

News 6 also provided a brief cellphone video submitted by a viewer:

 NewsOn6.com – Tulsa, OK – News, Weather, Video and Sports – KOTV.com |

*  *  *  *  *  *

Posted by on April 10, 2013 • Filed under: ambulances, Vehicle Operation & Ambulances, Videos • Tagged: , , , ,

Chicago Ambulance Crashes Into School Bus

No comments

No Passengers On The Bus

A CHICAGO FIRE DEPARTMENT AMBULANCE collided with a school bus at a controlled intersection Saturday morning around 9:15 am.

Chicago Tribune

The ambulance was on an emergency response to a call when it struck the rear left side of the bus near the axle.  The ambulance reportedly had its emergency lights and siren on at the time.

WMAQ-TV

The bus driver was ununjured and was able to get off the bus without any problem.  The two medics were transported with minor injuries.  There is no report yet on the cause for the wreck.

WMAQ-TV Ch. 5 has the REPORT.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Posted by on April 6, 2013 • Filed under: ambulances, News, Vehicle Operation & Ambulances • Tagged: , ,

Ambulance Crashes – Patient Calls It In From Pavement

No comments

Patient Ejected During Crash

EARLY SUNDAY MORNING an AmeriMed EMS ambulance was responding to the hospital with a patient on board  when the ambulance's driver lost control on an exit ramp and crashed heavily, tearing open the patient compartment and ejecting the patient through the rear doors. 

Cherokee County Fire Dept. photo

The two medics were both injured in the crash, but the patient had his cellphone with him and was physically and mentally able to get it and call 9-1-1.

The Cherokee County Fire Department responded to the crash and transported all (now) three victims to the hospital.

The Cherokee County Fire and Emergency Services department issued the following news release:

A Cherokee County 911 dispatcher received a call from a patient who was ejected from the back of an AmeriMed ambulance because of an accident. The ambulance was heading north on I-575 when the accident occurred. The patient also stated that they lost control of the ambulance and it rolled over. Two female medics were also injured.

Several units from Cherokee County Fire and Emergency Services were dispatched to the scene and later transported the three injured to Marietta’s Kennestone Hospital. All three patients did not appear to have any serious injuries.

The ambulance appeared to be a total loss. No additional injuries were reported. The cause of the accident is being investigated by the Georgia State Patrol.

Cherokee County Fire Dept. photo

No other information on the cause of the crash has been issued yet.

Cherokee County Fire and Emergency Services WEBSITE.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Posted by on April 2, 2013 • Filed under: ambulances, EMS Topics, Vehicle Operation & Ambulances • Tagged: , , ,

Ambulance Driver Cited For Head-On Crash in Ohio

1 comment

Three Vehicles Involved

THE DRIVER OF A MEIGS COUNTY (Ohio) EMS unit was cited by the Ohio State Highway Patrol for "traveling left of center" and causing a head-on crash Saturday evening.

Daily Tribune photo

Alfred Lyons, 49, was driving the ambulance at 7:35 pm with a patient on board when he drifted over the center line and collided head on with an oncoming car.  A second car following the first one was also caught up in the collision.  The Gallipolis Daily Tribune reports:

(The ambulance), transporting patient John Anderson, 72, of Racine, was traveling southbound on Ohio 7 when, at approximately 7:35 p.m., the driver traveled left of center and struck a Mercury Marquis that was traveling northbound, head-on, near the intersection of Ohio 554.

Anderson was reportedly not in a life or death situation at the time of the crash, according to the trooper, and was being transported from his home to Holzer Medical Center in Gallipolis by the EMS unit.

The driver of the Mercury Marquis, Charles Kearns, 75, of Mason, W.Va., as well as his passenger, Eleanor Kearns, 76, Mason, W.Va., were both taken to Holzer Medical Center by Meigs County EMS with moderate injuries.

A Honda minivan that was also traveling northbound directly behind the Mercury Marquis was also struck in the crash. The driver of that vehicle, Michelle Folmer, 35, Pomeroy, had possible injuries and was taken to Holzer Medical Center by Meigs County EMS, according to the highway patrol.

Lyons and his EMT partner, a 49-yr.-old woman, were both transported for minor injuries.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Posted by on March 26, 2013 • Filed under: ambulances, EMS Topics, Vehicle Operation & Ambulances • Tagged: ,

Ambulance Rollover in Milwaukee

1 comment

Red-Light Runner Nails It

A MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN, AMBULANCE responding to an emergency call Thursday morning was involved in a three-vehicle crash that left the ambulance on its side.

WITI-TV

The Meda-Care ambulance had just been dispatched from its quarters around 1 am and was traveling through a controlled intesection with the green light when a car on the cross street, which is believed to have run the red light, crashed into the side of the ambulance.  The unit was knocked into a third vehicle before it rolled over onto its side.

WDJT-TV filed this early video report:

 

Five people have been transported with minor injuries.  Little more is known about the wreck as investigations are still ongoing.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Posted by on March 21, 2013 • Filed under: ambulances, EMS Health & Safety, EMS Topics, Vehicle Operation & Ambulances, Videos • Tagged: , ,

Florida Ambulance Rollover – 5 Injured

Comments Off

Two Victims Triaged Level 2 Trauma

A FORT LAUDERDALE, FLORIDA FIRE Department ambulance was involved in a collision with a car Wednesday shortly before noon while it was transporting a patient.  The crash occurred shortly after noon today at an intersection and the impact caused the ambulance to roll onto its side and slide several feet farther.

TV4

Early reports say the there were five injured in the wreck including the patient.  Both EMT's were injued as well, one of them seriously.  Two auto passengers were also injured and transported with one of them listed as serious, too.

WSVN-TV filed this video report:

 WSVN-TV –

The Sun Sentinel reports:

"The impact was pretty severe," said Janet Catala, 41, who was stopped at the traffic light and watched the collision unfold before her eyes. "Lights and sirens were on, and everyone could hear them coming."

Rescue 47, eastbound for Broward Health Medical Center with the patient, apparently swerved as the northbound Volkswagen Passat approached from Southwest 15 Avenue, according to witness Ashley Better, 17.

The ambulance teetered, then fell onto its left side and skidded about 40 yards north in the westbound lanes of Davie Boulevard, said Better.

The ambulance was struck broadside by the car.  (TV 10)

The cause of the crash has not yet been determined.  It was at a controlled intersection, but no public report yet on which vehicle had the green.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Posted by on March 13, 2013 • Filed under: ambulances, EMS Topics, Vehicle Operation & Ambulances, Videos • Tagged: ,

Tough Week For UK Ambulance Service

Comments Off

Two Units Crumpled

IN SUSSEX, ENGLAND, LAST WEEK a South East Coast Ambulance was involved in a fatal crash.  On Thursday February 28. one of their units collided with an auto in Brighton resulting in the death of the car's driver.

BBC News reported:

Emergency teams were called to Marine Drive outside Roedean golf club at about 22:40 GMT on Thursday.

Sussex Police said Gary Tucker, 45, died at the scene and his passenger was seriously injured. There were no patients in the ambulance but a crew member was injured, officers said. Mr Tucker, from Longridge Avenue, Saltdean, was driving a Fiat Seicento.

His passenger, a 43-year-old man, was taken to the Royal Sussex County Hospital with serious but not life-threatening injuries, police said.

The EMT was only slightly injured and was released after treatment.  The ambulance was responding on an emergency call at the time.

*  *  *

SIX DAYS LATER, Wednesday March 6, another South East Coast Ambulance was responding on emergency conditions and collided with another car, again in Brighton.  The crash caused the ambulance to leave the road and smash into an electric control box.

The two occupants of the car, a Peugot 106, were transported with whiplash and minor head injuries.

The two medics were shaken up, but did not require transportation.  There was no patient in the ambulance.  The cause of the crash has not been disclosed.

BBC News also has that STORY.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Posted by on March 8, 2013 • Filed under: ambulances, Vehicle Operation & Ambulances • Tagged: , ,

Sleepy Driver Rolls Ambulance

1 comment

EMT Ejected, Seriously Hurt

AN EAGLE BUTTE INDIAN HEALTH SERVICES ambulance was involved in a rollover crash near Rapid City, South Dakota, Tuesday morning.

Rapid City Journal

South Dakota State Police Trooper Chris Regan said that the ambulance was transporting two patients plus a third civilian on Interstate 90 around 4:45 am when the driver fell asleep and veered off the right of the highway.  The ambulance then struck the rear of an unoccupied pickup truck that was parked on the shoulder.  The crash caused the ambulance to roll over and then it landed back on its wheels after tossing the EMTout of the back.

The EMT, Marne Lamb was tending to a 45-yr.-old man and an infant when the crash occurred and she received several broken bones and facial cuts.  She is in stable condition.  The two patients along with the infant's mother were transported to a Rapid City hospital with non-live threatening injuries.

KELO-TV

The trooper charged the ambulance driver Joseph Meiligan, 32, with careless driving.

The Rapid City Journal has the STORY.
KELO-TV has MORE.

Posted by on March 6, 2013 • Filed under: ambulances, EMS Topics, Vehicle Operation & Ambulances • Tagged: , , , ,

Dash Cam Catches Ambulance Rollover

Comments Off

More Driver Training Needed

FROM RUSSIA, THE LAND OF ten-million dash cams, comes this video of an ambulance that got loose on a slippery road February 25.  Reportedly it happened in Novosibirsk.

It's possible that it was on an emergency because you can hear the horn as it approaches the camera car and the driver pulls to the right.

Fortunately there was another ambulance that just happened to be coming from the opposite direction and they were able to administer aid promptly.  One report says that everyone survived the crash.

 

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Posted by on March 1, 2013 • Filed under: ambulances, Vehicle Operation & Ambulances, Videos • Tagged:

Stop Sign-Running Ambulance Destroys Car

Comments Off

Not On Emergency Call

A FORT MYERS, FLORIDA, AMBULANCE passed through a stop sign Tuesday evening and crashed into the side of an automobile.  The ambulance was carrying a patient, but did not have any emergency lights or siren activated.

News-Press

Witnesses told police that the ambulance rolled into the intersection without stopping first, then broadsided the passenger car.

News-Press

Six people were transported, four from the car, the ambulance driver and the patient.  Police say that all six had serious injuries.

The News-Press filed this video report:

 

WINK-TV has the story and additional video HERE.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Posted by on February 28, 2013 • Filed under: ambulances, EMS Topics, rescue, Vehicle Operation & Ambulances, Videos • Tagged: ,

4 Injured in Ambulance Crumple

Comments Off

Controled Intersection Collision

FOUR PEOPLE WERE INJURED TUESDAY morning in Wilmington, Delaware, when a St. Francis Hospital EMS ambulance collided with an auto at a controlled intersection around 9:15 am.

DelawareOnline

The ambulance was responding to an emergency call with two EMT's on board when it met the car which had two adult males in it.  All four people suffered non-life threatening injuries and were transported for treatment.

DelawareOnline

The police have not yet disclosed the cause of the accident

Delaware Online has the STORY.

Delaware Online also filed this video report from the scene:

 

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Posted by on February 20, 2013 • Filed under: ambulances, EMS Topics, Vehicle Operation & Ambulances, Videos • Tagged: , ,

Ambulance Crasher Charged With Assault on Firefighters

1 comment

Drunk Honeydipper in Deep Trouble Now

A GRANDVIEW, MISSOURI, MAN Matthew Stockton, 23, has been charged with two counts of assault on a law enforcement officer after driving his car into an ambulance at an emergency scene.

It was shortly after midnight Saturday morning when Stockton was tooling down U.S. 71 approaching 85th St. in Kansas City and came upon a blockade protecting an accident scene with injuries.

The Kansas City Star reports:

According to court documents, the rescuers saw Stockton’s car headed toward them on the snowy highway, realized he was not going to stop and tried to get out of the way.

Stockton allegedly crashed into a (KCMO FD) ambulance that had its emergency lights flashing, knocking it into the pickup that had crashed earlier. A paramedic was pinned in the pickup door and a firefighter was knocked down.

Police said that Stockton, who allegedly had a blood alcohol level of .194, told them he had been at a friend’s house but he had to leave because her boyfriend was on his way home.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Posted by on February 18, 2013 • Filed under: ambulances, current events, EMS Topics, News • Tagged: ,

Ambulance Crash in Connecticut

Comments Off

Had Patient On Board

A HUNTER'S AMBULANCE UNIT in Eastern Connecticut was involved in an accident around 3 am Monday morning and rolled onto its side.

NBC News

The wreck took place on I-95 between exits 51 an 52 while the ambulance was taking a patient to a hospital for abdominal pains.  Early reports are incomplete, but it appears to be a single-vehicle accident.

The Branford Patch is reporting:

The ambulance was transporting a patient to the hospital for abdominal pain. Branford Medic responded with two ambulances, transporting the patient and two male crew members to Yale-New Haven Hospital.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Posted by on February 11, 2013 • Filed under: ambulances, Vehicle Operation & Ambulances • Tagged: , ,

Street Collision Sends Ambulance Into House

Comments Off

Collides With Auto While Responding

AN FDNY AMBULANCE IN QUEENS, New York, was responding with lights and siren activated for an unconscious person Sunday afternoon when it collided with another auto.  The crash caused the ambulance to veer off the road and through a yard fence before striking a house where it came to rest.

WNBC-TV

The driver of the car was seriously injured and is hospitalized in stable condition.  The two EMS workers were transported for minor injuries and later released.

WNBC-TV has filed this video report from the scene:

 

View more videos at: http://nbcnewyork.com.

The investigation is continuing into what caused the two vehicles to collide.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Posted by on January 21, 2013 • Filed under: ambulances, Vehicle Operation & Ambulances, Videos • Tagged: , ,

Fatal Ambulance Crash in Kentucky

Comments Off

Ambulance Was Not On a Call

A TRAFFIC ACCIDENT INVOLVING A MEADE COUNTY, Kentucky, ambulance Thursday evening left one woman dead and the two EMT's with serious injuries.  Two other people were also transported with less serious injuries.

The ambulance did not have a patient on board and was just driving non-emergency when a 27-yr.-old woman blew a stop sign and collided with the ambulance.  The ambulance driver saw the accident unfolding and took an evasive action which led to him glancing off another car.  But the crash was unavoidable and the ambulance struck the auto on the driver's side.  The ambulance then careened off the road and rolled over.

WAVE-TV

WAVE-TV reports:

According to (Kentucky State Police) and Meade County Sheriff officials, a silver 2008 Pontiac driven by Sarah S. Hottell, 27, of Brandenburg was eastbound on KY 333 approaching the intersection of KY 313 when she failed to stop at a stop sign. An ambulance, driven by Todd Flory, 49, of Vine Grove swerved to Hottell's car but was unable to do so. The ambulance struck the Pontiac in the driver's side front, then left the roadway and overturned on the southbound side of the intersection ejecting both Flory and his passenger EMT Michael Wise, 48, from Payneville.

During the collision, a Volkswagen driven by Maria P. Williams, 47, of Brandenburg, was also struck.

Hottell's car also left the roadway on the south side and came to final rest in the ditch. She was pronounced dead at the scene. In addition to Hottell, a 10-month old infant, who was properly restrained in a car seat, was in the car.

One of the EMT's suffered a crushed pelvis and the other a serious back injury.

WHAS-TV Ch. 11 filed this video report from the scene:

 

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Posted by on January 11, 2013 • Filed under: ambulances, EMS Topics, rescue, Rescues, Vehicle Operation & Ambulances, Videos • Tagged: , ,

UPDATED: Ambulance Crash Leaves Driver Dead

Comments Off

Driver Killed in Crash

UPDATE, 9:30 AM:  The Newark Star-Ledger is reporting that the driver of the ambulance has died.  Scroll down.
UPDATE #2:  Major Crimes Unit investigating the fire.  Scroll down.

AN AMBULANCE TRANSPORTING A PATIENT from a house fire in Stillwater, New Jersey (Sussex County), crashed into a pole this morning (Tuesday) critically injuring the entire crew.

WABC-TV

The utility pole came down bringing live electric lines with it, which delayed other rescuers from getting to and treating the people on board the ambulance.  Unconfirmed statements from the scene were saying that it appeared CPR was being performed on the driver.

The accident occurred around 5 am.

WNYW-TV

Another ambulance continued transporting the 68-yr.-old patient whose condition is not yet known.

Early reports say that there was also a fatality in the house fire.

Update, 9:30 am:
The Star-Ledger is now reporting:

Two are dead after a fatal house fire that's being investigated by arson and major crimes units, officials confirmed today.

One person died in the blaze – but in a strange twist, the driver of an ambulance carrying one of the victims of the fire died as he drove to the hospital, authorities said. The patient in the ambulance survived.

The second injured occupant of the house was taken away in the ambulance that crashed shortly thereafter on Stillwater-Fredon Road – but he was then transferred to another ambulance and taken to a hospital, Mueller added. The driver apparently had a medical issue, crashed, and was pronounced dead at the scene, said Sgt. Adam Grossman of the state police.

Update #2:
The Star-Ledger is also reporting that according to Greg Mueller, the county’s first assistant prosecutor, the fire is currently being investigated by New Jersey State Police arson investigators, as well as the Sussex County Prosecutor's Major Crimes Unit.

This story will be further updated when more information is made available.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Posted by on January 8, 2013 • Filed under: ambulances, EMS Topics, rescue, Rescues, Vehicle Operation & Ambulances • Tagged: ,

Is This 2013′s First Ambulance Crash? UPDATE: No, It’s Not

2 comments

Record Now Goes To Providence Indianapolis

Update, 11 am Wednesday:
Just now got bumped.  A Facebook reader writes in the JEMS FB page that an Indianapolis medic unit was involved in a collision at 1:00 am (not yet confirmed).

A PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND, AMBULANCE was transporting a patient to the hospital around 2:30 am New Year's morning when it collided with an automobile.

WPRI-TV

The patient was transferred to another unit shortly after and continued on to the emergency room.  The driver of the car was given a field sobriety test by the police and then immediately arrested and taken away.  There were no reported injuries as a result of the crash.

WPRI-TV – filed this video report from the scene:

 

Ambulance, car crash New Years morning

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Posted by on January 1, 2013 • Filed under: ambulances, EMS Topics, Vehicle Operation & Ambulances, Videos • Tagged: , ,

Another Ambulance Head-On Crash …. One Killed, 5 Injured

Comments Off

Ambulance Parked With Patient in Back

A HOUSTON, TEXAS, FIRE DEPT. AMBULANCE WAS TOTALLED Monday morning when an SUV slammed into it at speed around 4:30 am Central.  An HFD rescue squad was assisting the ambulance crew with a heart attack victim who had just been put into the back of the ambulance when the crash occurred.

Houston Chronicle

KHOU-TV tells us:

Five firefighters and EMS workers have been taken to hospitals, all with injuries. They are said to be in stable condition.

The patient and the family member of that patient were also transferred to a hospital. They are listed in stable condition as well.

"They had been on scene 20 minutes. They had the patient in the back of the ambulance. They had one next of kin in the front seat that was going to the hospital with them," said Jay Evans with the Houston Fire Department. " There was an SUV going westbound on Holman that struck head-on with the ambulance."

The driver of the SUV was killed instantly, but fortunately none of the other victims have been reported as seriously injured.

Houston Chronicle

KHOU-TV filed this video report this morning:

 

The Houston Chronicle has MORE.

Hat tip:  Will W.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Posted by on November 26, 2012 • Filed under: ambulances, EMS Topics, Fire Rescue Topics, Vehicle Operation & Ambulances, Videos • Tagged: , , ,

Ambulance Rollover in Oklahoma

1 comment

While Going Through a Red Light …. Again

A MIDWEST CITY REGIONAL AMBULANCE collided with a car in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, Thursday afternoon and rolled onto its side with a patient in back.

KOCO-TV

The ambulance was traveling with its emergency lights and siren activated while transporting a patient to the hospital when it went through a red traffic signal.  An automobile was on the cross street traveling though the green when it struck the right-side real of the ambulance, tipping it over.  KOCO-TV reported:

The SUV driver told KOCO-TV that they had a green light and didn't hear the ambulance's siren.

The Emergency Medical Services Authority said four people were in the back of the ambulance at the time of the wreck.

Officials later said three ambulance staffers and one patient were taken to Mercy Hospital in good condition. Firefighters said none of the injuries was serious.

View KOCO-TV's video report from the scene HERE.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Posted by on November 23, 2012 • Filed under: ambulances, Vehicle Operation & Ambulances • Tagged: ,

Ambulance vs. Truck Leaves 5 Dead in Pakistan

Comments Off

Three More Injured

A FUEL TRUCK SLAMMED HEAD-ON into an ambulance Sunday in the Punjab region of Pakistan.

NewsTribe

Three people in the ambulance, a man, a woman and her child, died before help could arrive and three more, including the ambulance crew, were seriously injured.  They have been transported but their conditions were not made available.

Charges have been placed against the truck driver who fled the scene before the police arrived.

The News Tribe as the STORY.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Posted by on November 18, 2012 • Filed under: ambulances, EMS Topics, Vehicle Operation & Ambulances • Tagged: , ,

Fatal Ambulance Crash in Georgia

Comments Off

Ambulance Rear-Ended by Fleeing Car

A CAR CARRYING THREE PEOPLE near Brunswick, Georgia, rear-ended an ambulance at high-speed Tuesday morning.  The crash sent the ambulance careening across the highway and demolished the car, killing all three passengers who were not wearing seat belts.  The car was fleeing from a Glynn County Police officer who had been following them after witnessing some suspicious activity and had tried to pull the driver over.

Glynn County police dash cam records the
car striking the rear of the ambulance.

The Athens Banner Herald reports:

Glynn County patrol officer Carl Evans was checking around businesses off Perry Lane Road just west of Interstate 95 about 12:45 a.m. when he saw the Corolla emerge from behind Guest Cottages and Suites hotel, Doering said.

Not only was the car similar to descriptions of one seen in the area of recent auto burglaries, it also remained at the stop sign longer than normal, Doering said.

Evans shined his car spotlight on the driver and saw that her head was forward as if she were looking down toward her lap, he said "He thought she was asleep at the wheel, and the spotlight woke her up,’’ Doering said.

(The car's driver) looked up suddenly, draped her safety belt over her shoulder and then turned onto Perry Lane Road toward Spur 25 at a normal speed, Doering said.

Suspecting criminal activity, Evans got behind the Corolla after it turned onto Spur 25 and turned on his emergency lights whereupon Smith suddenly accelerated and kept going reaching a speed of 100 mph with Evans following, Doering said.

The car had gone through several green traffic lights but as it approached one intersection there was a red light with a Southside Community Fire Protection ambulance sitting there.  As the Corolla approached, the light turned green and the ambulance started moving just as the car plowed into the rear, triggering the collsion.

The 3 unbelted passengers were all killed
immediately.  Glynn County police video.

The ambulance was on a non-emergency transport with a patient, but the only injury in the amblance were some "not serious" injuries to the patient.

WJXT-TV Ch. 4 Jacksonville has a video report that includes much of the police dash cam video HERE.

Read the full, descriptive story in the Banner Herald HERE.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Posted by on November 14, 2012 • Filed under: ambulances, crime, EMS Topics, News • Tagged: , , ,

U-Turning Ambulance Collides and Flips in Long Island

Comments Off

Turning Left From the Right Lane

A SUFFOLK COUNTY, LONG ISLAND, ambulance tried to make a left U-turn from the right lane early Thursday morning and ended up on its side after colliding with a car.

Newsday / David Rubin

Police say that the Cenral Islip-Hauppauge Volunteer Ambulance unit was traveling in the right land on Veteran's Highway in Hauppauge when the driver started to make a U-turn onto the oncoming lanes.  Unfortunately there was a car in the left lane alongside the ambulance and his maneuver led to a collision that resulted in the ambulance rolling over onto its side.

The accident took place at 1:20 am this morning and so far no charges have been made while investigation is ongoing at the time of this news release. It has not yet been disclosed if the ambulance was on an emergency call or not.  The two EMT's were shaken up and transported for observation.  No word yet on the car's passengers.

Newsday has the early REPORT.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Posted by on October 25, 2012 • Filed under: ambulances, EMS Topics, Vehicle Operation & Ambulances • Tagged: , ,

Ohio Ambulance Head-On Update

Comments Off

Car Driver's Fault – Ambulance Driver Caught

LAST MONTH ON SEPTEMBER 18 an off-duty Columbus, Ohio, police detective died in a vehicle accident.  She was driving her personal vehicle on a rural road when she swerved across the center line and struck an ambulance head-on.  (You may recall the Firegeezer video REPORT HERE.)

NBC News

The State Highway Patrol investigation is still not complete, but a police spokesman said recently that a medical condition caused the car's driver, Marcia "Jody" Frederick to cross the center line and crash into the oncoming Jefferson County FD ambulance that was being driven by Firefighter Todd Picken, 31.

Whiled Picken was absolved of any blame for the accident, the investigation disclosed that he does not have a driver's license. 

The Columbus Dispatch reports:

The State Highway Patrol said that (Picken) failed to take all the steps to get his license back after a drunken-driving conviction in July 2011. Picken has been charged in Madison County Municipal Court with having no operator’s license and failing to reinstate his license.

When asked whether he knew of Picken’s drunken-driving arrest, Jefferson Township Fire Chief Bill Houk said he’d rather not answer and referred the question to Madison County Prosecutor Steve Pronai who then said he has asked that question and hasn’t received an answer.

Picken’s driving record from the Bureau of Motor Vehicles also shows convictions involving a traffic-control device in Pickerington in March; reckless operations out of Reynoldsburg in 2010 and 2008; a 90-mph speed violation in 2007 in Franklin County; and other traffic offenses dating to 2001.

Picken, who is an emergency medical technician and firefighter certified and licensed through the State Board of Emergency Medical Services, is on leave because he was injured in the crash, Houk said. Houk acknowledged that because of the drunken-driving conviction, Picken probably would not be covered by the township’s insurance.

Picken was arraigned Friday on charges of driving without a license and failing to reinstate his license.  He pleaded not guilty and was ordered to return to court on November 13.

Firegeezer wonders why a firefighter with such a horrendous driving record is even being allowed to drive any FD vehicles in the first place?

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Posted by on October 21, 2012 • Filed under: ambulances, EMS Topics, Vehicle Operation & Ambulances • Tagged: , , ,