By Kristen Smith
The Daily Times
 Photo courtesy of Sussex County EMS Stephanie Callaway |
LEWES, Del. — Sussex County paramedics are mourning the loss of one of their own. Stephanie Callaway, 31, of Lewes was killed in a single-vehicle crash at about 2:40 a.m. Tuesday on Route 24 near the Lewes-Rehoboth Fire Company substation in Angola, according to state police spokesman Sgt. Joshua Bushweller.
Officials said the ambulance she was riding in was en route to Beebe Medical Center with one patient, two Mid-Sussex Rescue Squad paramedics and Callaway on board when it struck a tree after swerving to avoid a deer in the roadway. The impact opened the side of the ambulance, according to officials on the scene.
The patient, 82-year-old Betty J. Hall of Lewes, and Callaway were killed. The driver, Michael E. Wissman, 34, of Frankford, and paramedic Brice H. Hickman, 47, of Dagsboro suffered nonlife-threatening injuries, Bushweller said. The two injured persons were transported to Beebe Medical Center in Lewes. Route 24 was closed for several hours, Bushweller said.
A native of Georgetown, Callaway attended Delaware Technical & Community College and earned her bachelor’s degree in emergency medical services management from George Washington University. She is survived by her husband and two young children. In addition to her paramedic duties, Callaway served as a field training officer and spokeswoman for the Sussex County EMS. She was also president of the Sussex County Paramedic Association.
The ‘consummate professional’
Colleagues gathered Tuesday morning to recall their fondest memories of Callaway, who was regarded as a “consummate professional” who was easy to talk to and who always had a positive outlook.
Grief counselors have been brought in to console coworkers, according to Glenn Luedtke, director of Sussex County’s EMS.
Officials said staff duty assignments are being adjusted to accommodate those employees who were close to Callaway. Offers of assistance have poured in from neighboring departments, including those in Kent and New Castle counties in Delaware, as well as paramedics from Ocean City and Caroline County in Maryland.
“Our family is gathering around us and that’s how we’ll get through this,” Luedtke said in a statement. “It will be tough, but somehow we will get through it.”
Sussex County Administrator David B. Baker has ordered all county flags to be lowered to half-staff until further notice. Baker said the entire county government is saddened by the loss of one of its own.
“People don’t realize the dangers that are involved in this profession sometimes,” Baker said. “What has happened here today certainly drives that home for all of us.”
Callaway’s passing is the first line-of-duty death for the Sussex County Emergency Medical Services department in its 18-year history, officials said, but not the first accident of its kind. Since Jan. 1, three accidents involving emergency vehicles have occurred in Sussex County.
On Jan. 28, a Millsboro Volunteer Fire Company ambulance was stopped at the intersection of Beaver Dam Road and Indian Mission Road in Harbeson when it was struck by a Jeep driven by a 44-year-old Georgetown man who, failed to negotiate a curve. The driver of the Jeep was killed. Three paramedics were seriously injured, but all survived.
Another accident May 16 involved a Hart to Heart ambulance, a Dover-based medical transport company. The off-duty ambulance was traveling southbound on Coastal Highway near Milford when it was struck by a vehicle attempting to make a U-turn. The three members of the ambulance squad were all treated for nonlife-threatening injuries, officials said.
Funeral arrangements for Callaway are pending. The investigation continues, officials said.
Staff Writer Andrew Ostroski contributed to this report.