By Adam Bowie
The Canadian Press
FREDERICTON, Canada — A teenage boy died last week in a community south of Fredericton while an ambulance responding to his home was delayed due to roads being closed by flood waters.
Ambulance NB says it took 56 minutes for an ambulance to reach the 14-year-old’s home in Fredericton Junction, about 25 kilometres south of the Fredericton.
The family declined to reveal what the boy’s medical condition was, or what the cause of his death was.
However, Ambulance NB said 14-year-old Cody Jones died before the emergency vehicle was able to reach his house, and told the Fredericton Gleaner the vehicle was delayed on several occasions.
The newspaper reported Monday that dispatchers received an emergency call from the Jones home at 6:19 p.m. on April 2 and immediately contacted the nearest ambulance, which was in Oromocto.
The vehicle encountered the flooded Post Road as they travelled, and were forced to turn back. They then tried another route — the Dewitt Road — but once again found the way was barred to rising river waters.
Ambulance NB dispatchers then decided it would be quicker to send a second ambulance from Fredericton to the scene, so another ambulance was told to respond.
Preston Holmes, director of clinical operations for Ambulance NB, said officials will be looking at this case to determine how the call could have been handled more efficiently.
He said Ambulance NB hasn’t found software that incorporates these road closure advisories into its electronic mapping systems.
''Unfortunately, there’s no electronic technology that will (bring the data together),’' he said.
''We certainly have explored it and we’ll continue to explore technological solutions, but right now, to the best of our knowledge, it simply does not exist.’'
Holmes said every paramedic knows that they’re supposed to check for road advisories, and they’ve been reminded to be aware of any closures in their designated areas.
''What we have done is we’ve reinforced the idea for paramedics to be aware of their areas,’' he said.
''All we can do is continue to publish the reports, daily, of the road closures. (Paramedics) print them, and take them in their ambulances.’'
However, he added that closures change ''from day to day.’'
Jack Carr, the member of the legislature for New Maryland-Sunbury West, said he’s sympathetic to the paramedics who were trying to respond, but the system has to function more effectively.
''New Brunswickers need to know that when they make a call to the ambulance that it will be there in a timely fashion,’' he said.
''So I’ve written to Ambulance NB, and forwarded my email on to the health minister, a request for the written ambulance report. And that’s the first step that I’m taking to find out the details of what happened.’'
The Department of Transportation had posted information on its Traffic Advisories/Road Construction Report website that showed both of the flooded roads had been closed before April 2.
The advisory says the Post Road has been closed since March 2 and it says the Dewitt Road was closed by flooding March 31.
Department of Transportation spokesman Andrew Holland said he’ll be reviewing the system to see if transportation officials can do anything else to ease the flow of information.
''We’re still in the process of collecting additional information to see whether, in fact, improvements can be made,’' he said Monday.
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