YORK, Pa. — The vice president of the ambulance company that had a vehicle stolen last week described how technology helped them and police retrieve the ambulance and find the perpetrator.
Eugene Smith, 21, took the ambulance for a joy ride while medics assisted a patient inside a home Nov 27. He drove the ambulance throughout the city and then abandoned it, the York Daily Record reported.
Ted Hake, White Rose Ambulance vice president, said all of the company’s vehicles are equipped with Automatic Vehicle Locators (AVLs) and DriveCams; therefore, as soon as the medics found out the vehicle was missing, they were able to locate it. The DriveCam recording allowed police to identify Smith.
Hake said, in light of the incident, the company is considering purchasing a piece of technology that would prevent someone from stealing a running ambulance.