By EMS1 Staff
SEATTLE — A violent patient being transported in an ambulance by EMS providers hijacked the rig and then crashed it, according to officials.
KIRO7 reported that the AMR crew contacted police after the patient became violent, and when the EMS provider driving the ambulance pulled over and got out to greet police, the patient climbed into the driver’s seat and hijacked the rig.
Police said crashed the ambulance on the northbound side of a highway, and then somehow managed to get over to the southbound lanes on foot.
According to officials, the patient climbed a street sign and jumped onto the roof of a car, which he tried to break into before police finally apprehended him.
Teamsters Local 763 President Anthony Murrietta said the incident highlights AMR ignoring the best interest of its employees.
“These people put their life at risk every day and the company wants them to start a dollar above Seattle’s minimum wage and pay for 25 percent of their healthcare,” Murrietta said.
AMR employees in Seattle rallied in August to fight for higher wages, and recently rejected the company’s latest offer of a nearly 10 percent raise, which is still considerably less than what employees make in other areas.
Murrietta said a strike could happen if things do not change.
“They’re not going to just walk off the job, but we need the company to recognize that this is serious and we will [strike] if that’s what we have to do,” he said.