By Laura French
SAN ANTONIO — A Texas EMT who was one day away from taking his last paramedic exam was killed on his way home from an EMS shift in a head-on crash with a fugitive’s vehicle.
Officials say Allegiance Mobile Health EMT Asante Contreras, 20, was killed on Sunday when the vehicle of Joseph Woolard, which was going the wrong way, collided with his vehicle, according to KENS5. Woolard was reportedly wanted for violating his conditions of release after allegedly shooting at deputies in 2019.
The San Antonio Police Department said Woolard, 36, was being pursued by officers at the time of the crash, but did not say what initially spurred the chase, according to KSAT. Woolard has been charged with murder and evading arrest.
A deputy involved in the 2019 shootout with Woolard referred to him as a “career criminal” in a statement last year.
Allegiance Mobile Health said in a statement that Contreras was one test away from achieving “a selfless career he felt was his calling.”
The agency has organized a fundraiser selling first responder bracelets to help pay for his funeral expenses.
Contreras previously worked as a lifeguard for the City of Del Rio and as an EMT with the Amistad Medical Ambulance Company, according to his obituary. He also volunteered as a standby EMT at a robotics event.
He is survived by his parents, paternal grandparents and two siblings.
His mother, Anja Contreras, told KENS5 he will be buried in the uniform he was meant to wear at his paramedic graduation.
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