The damage to the ambulance.
By SANCHESKA BROWN
Tribune Staff Reporter
sbrown@tribunemedia.net
POLICE are on the hunt for a man who stole a Public Hospitals Authority ambulance and crashed it into two vehicles before slamming into a home Saturday night.
Assistant Commissioner of Police Stephen Dean said Emergency Medical Services personnel responded to a call for emergency assistance for an elderly woman around 7.30pm in Gamble Heights when the ambulance was stolen out of the patient’s driveway.
“Two ambulance attendants responded to a call at the home.
“When they went inside to the patient, a young man jumped into the ambulance and sped off,” ACP Dean said.
“A short while later he collided into two
vehicles but still continued to (drive). The ambulance finally came to a stop when it collided into a home causing significant damage. The suspect then fled the area on foot.”
In a statement, the PHA said the ambulance, which is valued at $123,000, incurred damage to the front driver’s side.
“The PHA is confirming that an ambulance dispatched to a residence in Joan’s Heights was illegally commandeered by an unknown male shortly after 8pm (Saturday) evening,” the PHA said.
“According to reports, the vehicle was stolen after the two emergency medical technicians exited and had entered a home in the area to provide assistance to an 82-year-old resident of Tarpon Drive,” the statement said.
“The discovery was made shortly after the assessment of the female patient and as one crew member was returning to the vehicle to retrieve an item. It was at that point that a neighbour informed the EMT that a male had ‘jumped into the vehicle and drove off.’ Another ambulance was dispatched to take the patient to hospital. Police discovered the stolen ambulance one block away after it crashed into the wall of a residential property. Damage was also reported to two vehicles parked in the vicinity of the property. The emergency vehicle was damaged at the front on the driver’s side. The ambulance, which is the newer type one model in the fleet of PHA emergency vehicles, was commissioned in 2012 at a cost of approximately $123,000.”
Investigations continue.
Anyone with information on this incident is asked to contact police at 911 or 919, the Central detective Unit at 502-9991 or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 328-TIPS.
Comments
Sickened 9 years, 2 months ago
This punk needs to pay every penny for the repairs to the ambulance and home. He also needs to spend 100 hours of service at PMH AS WELL AS cleaning that old lady's yard once a week for a year (because what if she needed to be rushed out by that same ambulance) AND washing all PHA ambulances once a week for a year. Teach this punk a lesson and let him sweat his ass off.
ohdrap4 9 years, 2 months ago
he was trying to get to the prom!!!
TruePeople 9 years, 2 months ago
lol bey don't kill me. Dey ga de teeffing coffin's nexx right lol
birdiestrachan 9 years, 2 months ago
The ambulance drivers must have left the key in the ambulance. which would have made it easier for the criminal to steal..
Economist 9 years, 2 months ago
And Birdie, the two cars he hit should not have been in his way, right?
Oh, the house, those people should not have built the house there and then he would not have run into it.
TruePeople 9 years, 2 months ago
Also easier for the medics to then get back in the ambulance and transport the patient to hospital quickly. Honestly, i don't think paramedics are expecting an ambulance to be stolen.... and honestly.... they shouldn't...... o_o
B_I_D___ 9 years, 2 months ago
Pretty certain in the MAJORITY of the 'civilized' countries in the world, ambulance drivers leave their ambulances running while tending to someone on the scene. It maintains all the systems, life support equipment, the air conditioning in the rear of the ambulance, etc, etc, etc.
DillyTree 9 years, 2 months ago
Oh, so it's the ambulance driver's fault? Birdie, surely you can't mean some of the silly things you say.
If the Bahamas was a good and decent society, no one would have bothered with the ambulance -- keys or no keys. But look what we've come to accept as normal in this screwed-up, crime-ridden and corrupted little country of ours.
The little punk should be made to pay for every last cent of the damage done -- including 1000 hours of volunteer work at the hospital. I also like the idea of him having to clean the old lady's yard weekly. We have to send a message that this sort of behaviour is unacceptable in a decent society.
And he'd best be glad that the old lady survived, because otherwise, he would be facing manslaughter charges.
TalRussell 9 years, 2 months ago
Comrades, the young man may be a bad driver but besides all them trained to capture the fleeing policeman's, he's also an escape artists.
The minister of education should offer the youngster a scholarship to learn the mechanics trade, not face imprisonment. After all he did have the smarts lay await for one few mechanically operational ambulances to take his joyride.
TruePeople 9 years, 2 months ago
what?
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