Scores injured in week’s accidents
Scores of people were injured in a number of accidents in the North Durban area last week.
CHOAS reigned on the roads last week with multiple accidents in the North Durban area keeping paramedics busy.
SATURDAY 3 AUGUST
Crisis Medical Paramedics responded to another collision on the N2 north before the M41 at around 9.30pm on Saturday evening. The paramedics found two vehicles that had collided with each other. Four people from both vehicles sustained various injuries ranging from minor to moderate and were transported to eThekwini Hospital by a Crisis Medical ambulance.
Shortly afterwards paramedics were called to North Coast Road and Victor Road where an out of control car crashed into a bus shelter injuring two pedestrians waiting for transport. Both people were seriously injured requiring them to be fully immobilised before being transported to eThekwini Hospital by a Crisis Medical ambulance.
Crisis Medical paramedics attended another collision between a truck and two vehicles on the M41 eastbound at 7.15am on Saturday.
The paramedics quickly assessed the scene and found that a man from a small hatchback sustained suspected head injuries. Great care was taken to immobilize the injured man before transporting him to a local private hospital by a Crisis Medical ambulance. Reports suggest that two vehicles stopped at a red traffic light when a truck failed to stop, colliding with both vehicles before coming to a halt.
FRIDAY 2 AUGUST
On Friday Crisis Medical Paramedics attended to a multiple taxi collision on North Coast Road near Malacca Road at 6.55am.
A taxi collided with two stationery taxis, leaving 11 people injured, three of whom were trapped indside the taxis. Crisis Medical requested the assistance from eThekwini Fire and Rescue to free those who were trapped.
The injured were all stabilised and immobilised on scene before being transported to various hospitals in the area.
On scene reports suggested an errant taxi jumped a red traffic light and then collided with two stationary taxis who were picking up passengers.
On the same day, Crisis Medical paramedics responded to a collision between a taxi and a
bus on the M4 south bound just after the Broadway off-ramp at 3pm.
On arrival, paramedics inspected the occupants of the bus and taxi and established that six people in the taxi had sustained injuries ranging from minor to moderate. The injured were treated and stabilised on scene before being transported to area hospitals by Crisis Medical and Rescue Care ambulances. No passengers on the bus sustained injury.
In another incident, 21 people were injured when three taxis collided along North Coast Road.
Netcare 911 paramedics and their rescue officer, as well as other emergency serivces, arrived at the scene and found some of the people still trapped in the vehicles.
While the rescue team used the Jaws of Life to free the injured, paramedics worked tirelessly to stabilise them before they were transported to various hospitals in the area.
THURSDAY 31 JULY
On Thursday Rescue Care paramedics also rushed to the Nandi Drive bridge for another taxi accident, also involving a private security vehicle, at around 7am.
Paramedics said they found 19 people had sustained various injuries. Five people sustained serious injuries. A medical aero medical helicopter was called in to assist in transporting a critically injured person. Multiple ambulances were used to transport the seriously injured passengers to various hospitals.
It was established that two people in the security vehicle had sustained serious injuries and were fully immobilised with suspected spinal and leg fracture injuries before being transported to eThekwini Hospital for further treatment.
TUESDAY 30 JULY
Crisis Medical and Netcare 911 paramedics responded to reports of a collision on uMhlanga Rocks Drive outside Umhlanga Hospital at around 4pm on Tuesday 30 July.
Crisis Medical paramedics said they found a 14-year-old girl who sustained injuries to her knee and suspected spinal injuries when the car she was travelling in collided with a street pole. The nature of the collision caused the passenger to be trapped in the vehicle, requiring eThekwini Fire and Rescue to free the young girl.
Once extricated from the vehicle, the injured teenager was carefully immobilised and secured to a spinal board before being transported to hospital by Crisis Medical ambulance for further medical care.
