This Week in EMS: A Recap for June 30 - July 6, 2007

Fireworks in celebration of the 4th of July resulted in numerous accidental burns and explosions around the nation.

In Washington D.C., three people were injured after a fireworks mishap on the National Mall. The three are employees of the fireworks production company, and were injured when unused fireworks exploded in the pit after the show. One was transported by helicopter, another by ambulance, and the third was treated on the scene.

In Vienna, Virginia at least seven people -- five children and two adults - were injured when fireworks shot across the ground toward the crowd. The injuries were considered serious for one of the children and for one of the adults, who was flown to the burn unit at the Washington Hospital Center. The others were taken by ground transport to Inova Fairfax Hospital.

Read the full article and view raw video of the Virginia incident on EMSResponder.com: 10 Injured at Fireworks Mishaps in D.C. and Virginia. For more from public safety reporter Dave Statter of WUSA9, visit his news blog, STATter 911.

Following are additional fireworks injuries reported this week on EMSResponder.com:

• Washington Man Severely Burned by Fireworks Explosion
• Los Angeles Teen Loses 4 Fingers in Fireworks Explosion
• Baby, 20-Year-Old Injured in Texas Fireworks Incidents
• Nebraska Fireworks Mishap Injures Little Girl
• Florida Woman Injured When Fireworks Explode in Her Hand
• 2 Michigan Men Injured in Fireworks Explosion
• Woman Killed in Michigan Fireworks Mishap

In an EMS tragedy this week, a Wilton, Maine paramedic was killed in an ambulance accident, and several medics he had worked with over the past decade were sent to the scene.

Allan Parsons of Med-Care was tending to a patient in the back of the ambulance when it collided with a pickup truck. Parsons, 46, died at the scene. He had been involved in EMS for 10 years and was a father of three.

"We're devastated. We were all very close to him," said a responding paramedic. "You hate to have to go out after one of your own. It's a very sad day."

The driver of the ambulance had to be extricated, while the driver of the pickup truck was ejected, and both suffered serious injuries. The patient in the ambulance, who had suffered injuries in an ATV crash, slid off a gurney but remained strapped to a backboard in the wreck, and was listed in critical condition.

It was initially reported that the truck pulled out in front of the ambulance, but the cause of the crash remained under investigation.

To read more about Parsons and the details of this fatal incident, read the full article, Maine Medic Killed in Crash Mourned.

In other major EMS news this week, Oregon rescue personnel were under the microscope for failing to locate a reported car wreck. Despite an eyewitness's detailed report to 9-1-1 on June 8, rescuers couldn't find the car, and each involved agency gave up its search within 20-40 minutes.

The bodies of the car's two occupants were found inside the wrecked vehicle July 30th after a plane spotted the maroon Toyota Corolla from overhead. Family members now question whether the two lives could have been saved, saying they have reason to believe that at least one of the occupants, a pastor, was still alive after the crash. State police are conducting an internal investigation into the 9-1-1 response.

For further details, photos and video, visit the full article: Oregon Responders Missed Reported Wreck.

EMS Magazine Needs Your Feedback

Please take a moment to provide your input to EMS Magazine for an upcoming article, "Thinking Outside the MCI Box."

Tell us what special plans or unique steps your agency has taken to prepare for major multicasualty events. The best examples will be profiled in a September feature article in order to share these insights and approaches with the EMS community.

E-mail john.erich@cygnusb2b.com with your ideas and examples, or call 800/547-7377, x. 1106.

Awards

EMS Magazine is accepting nominations for the 2007 EMS Magazine/National Association of EMTs Gold Service Award. Nominations must be received by August 1, 2007. For contest rules and submissions, go to EMSResponder.com/goldaward.

EMSResponder.com Poll

This week's poll asks about your EMS agency's responses during this week of 4th of July celebrations.

To participate, visit the poll on the lower right side of EMSResponder.com.

Other top headlines this week on EMSResponder.com:

• Florida Man Uses Belt to Save Neighbor's Life
• New Orleans Medics Rescue Woman From River
• 37 Injured in London Train Derailment
• Minnesota Girl, 6, Disemboweled by Kiddie Pool Drain
• Video Shows Shoppers Stepping Over Dying Kansas Woman
• Tight Fit Bars Pennsylvania Ambulance Company from New Digs
• Flight Nurse Survives Being Partially Sucked Out of Plane