Ambulance transporting patient attacked with rock on the N14 in Krugersdorp
An ambulance transporting a patient was attacked with a rock on the N14 in Krugersdorp on Thursday.
ATTACKS ON EMERGENCY SERVICES ARE BECOMING MORE FREQUENT
According to ER24 spokesperson Russel Meiring, the two ER24 paramedics and a patient had a lucky escape after a large rock got thrown through their rescue vehicle’s side window whilst driving on the N14 in Krugersdorp.
“Quinton and Zelda were busy transporting a patient to a nearby hospital after he had been involved in a vehicle rollover earlier.
“Quinton had been driving the ambulance when he heard a loud smash from behind. The crews managed to evade the hostile environment and found a safe place to stop and assessed the situation. Fortunately, the medics did not sustain any injuries.”
ALSO READ: Cape Town: Three Fire and Rescue Services vehicles attacked and stoned
Meiring said a second ER24 ambulance was called to the scene to transport the patient to a nearby hospital.
“On the scene of the crime, medics found the large rock in the left-hand lane. A witness to the incident stated that two young men had thrown the rock at the ambulance.”
Local authorities were on the scene to investigate further.
Meiring furthermore said ER24 has taken proactive measures, such as smash-and-grab window tinting, etc., and training our staff on emergency medical support in a hostile environment (EMSHE) to ensure the ongoing safety of staff and patients.
“ER24 condemns all attacks against emergency workers and asks the community to report any incidents such as these.”
In the last week, there have been at least two other attacks on emergency services.
A KwaZulu-Natal paramedic was shot dead in an ambush, and her colleague was injured while they were in the process of preparing to transport injured patients to a hospital in the early hours on Monday morning.
ALSO READ: KZN paramedic shot dead, another critical after ambulance ambush
In Cape Town, three Fire and Rescue vehicles were attacked and stoned in less than 24 hours.
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