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Jun 27, 2009 7:01 pm US/Central
Ambulance Crashes On Way To Other Ambulance Crash
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) ―
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Police said in both cases, the paramedics driving the ambulances were doing what they were supposed to do, but the other drivers were not.
CBS
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Witnesses told police they saw 30-year-old Kartaris Harris driving his minivan without his lights on. He was taken into custody on suspicion of drunken driving.
Hennepin County Sheriff's Office
Within a matter of minutes Saturday morning, two Hennepin County Medical Center ambulances were involved in separate crashes.
The first happened at Olson Memorial Highway and Lyndale Avenue North in Minneapolis around 3:15 a.m. when an ambulance crashed into a Rainbow Taxi Cab. Police said the taxi driver was cited for not yielding to an emergency vehicle.
Less than 15 minutes later, the second crash happened at the intersection of 7th Street and 5th Avenue when a minivan hit an ambulance that was responding to the first crash. In that crash, witnesses told police they saw 30-year-old Kartaris Harris driving his minivan without his lights on.
After hitting the ambulance, witnesses said they saw Harris climb into the back seat of his van. He refused to take a blood-alcohol test and police took him into custody on suspicion of drunken driving.
Police said in both cases, the paramedics driving the ambulances were doing what they were supposed to do, but the other drivers were not.
Steve Hagstrom is a paramedic for Allina Medical Transportation. He said driving an ambulance can be a dangerous occupation, and when other drivers see their lights and hear their sirens they should pull over immediately.
"It is very important for them to slow down and stop because then we know -- we're very confident then that they're not going to make some other evasive maneuver. If you're stopped, we know you're stopped. It's very safe for us to pass," explained Hagstrom.
Hagstrom said when an ambulance is involved in a crash it creates a domino effect in which medical resources are reduced and people in need of medical attention are impacted.
"If you are having a bad day, the person we are going to take care of on a 911 call is having much worse day than you are, so give us a break and get out of our way," advised Hagstrom.
Of the eight people involved in both crashes, only the cab driver and his two passengers were hospitalized. The four paramedics involved were treated for minor injuries.
Saturday morning's crashes mark the third time ambulances have been involved in accidents in the past week. A week ago, 79-year-old Margaret Kuehn was killed when an ambulance backed into her in the alley behind her St. Paul home.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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