Sunday, February 15, 2015

EMS PERSONNEL ARE AT HIGH RISK OF INJURY FROM OTHER DRIVERS WHILE THEY ASSIST ACCIDENT VICTIMS: EMERGENCY RESPONDERS STRUCK ON SCENE OF BELTWAY, OTHER ACCIDENTS IN WASHINGTON, DC









FEBRUARY 15, 2015




WASHINGTON, DC




Among the many traffic accidents around the region, a major crash on the Beltway Inner Loop between River Road and 270 spur shut down all lanes on Saturday night  and sent six people to area hospitals including two EMS workers.




A pickup truck lost control and crashed into an ambulance as workers were helping three people trapped in the vehicles in an earlier accident on that section of the Inner Loop.




Montgomery County Fire spokesman Pete Piringer  also reports a bus ran into first responders who were at an accident on University Boulevard near Lorain Avenue in Silver Spring, Maryland.  He says a Metro bus and Bowie State University bus were involved and no one has serious injuries.




WTOP’s Rahul Bali headed to the scene of the Beltway where there was an accident after River Road and responding emergency workers ended up being hit.




The statistics show that EMS personnel, firefighters, troopers, tow-truck drivers are at a high risk of injury from other drivers at the scene of an accident.  Flashing lights, reflective clothing, signs, warnings does not seem to protect the EMS personnel from negligent or reckless drivers.