I "Stole" an Ambulance

[JonTullos]

I just started my first EMT-Basic job at a hospital-based service. For the last two weeks I've been doing orientation and finished that on Friday. The Basic scheduled for Saturday called out so I was asked to fill in, therefore I worked my first 24 yesterday.

I also managed to steal an ambulance.

My truck was assigned to transfer a patient to another facility. The other crew's truck was parked where I normally would pull up my truck to load a patient so I have to move mine. Somehow, as we're getting ready to go, I get the rigs mixed up. By the time it's all said and done, I managed to load the patient onto the other crew's truck and drove off in it. I had no idea I had taken the wrong truck until after we left the hospital. My medic laughed his head off. Yes, it was a truck that belonged to us, it just wasn't the truck that my medic and I were assigned to.

I still can't believe I did this! I've already received lots of grief about this, including (as we're going out the door to respond to an MVC) an ER tech yelling to me, "don't steal anymore ambulances!" to a couple of phone calls since I got home this morning. Lord only knows what grief awaits me when I report for my 48 on Thursday.

So that's that. Go ahead, and let me have it. BTW, has anyone done any bonehead moves on their first day "on their own?" Surely I'm not the only one.

Jon

[rescue99]

Oh Jon..this is going to be a looooonnnggg rookie experience! In a year or so it will be a urban legend you can deny, deny, deny

[JonTullos]

Originally Posted by rescue99

Oh Jon..this is going to be a looooonnnggg rookie experience! In a year or so it will be a urban legend you can deny, deny, deny

Well, now there's written proof... LOL

[Mountain Res-Q]

JT... my man... Ya, if I was working a that company with you, you would NEVER hear the end of it... get ready for that next shift... stories like that spread fast... LOL... now on to my "stolen ambo" story, just to make you realize that at least you didn't do this one...

NOTE: I was not party to this one, but I am aware of a "stolen ambo" when I was working ambo... but, once again, I was not party to the actual theft

At my company we used type 2 ambo (vans); except for the CCT and Neonatal rig, which were both type 3 (box style), for the extra room. We were a private company, but the Neonatal rig was housed at the hospital that had the only neonatal unit within 100 miles. When we got a neonatal transfer call, we had to go to the hospital, drop off our rig, pick up the neonatal rig (and usually jump it), pick up the neonatal crew form the hospital (2 RNs and a RRT), and play taxie for the next 4 hours, as neonatal calls usually invovled taking the neonatal crew to a hospital 1-2 hours away, waiting while they did their thing in the dinky hospital, and then transporting them back the 1-2 hours.

Well, one of our crews was assigned to do a Neonatal call on this fine 100+ degree summer day. When they left their regular rig at the hospital for the transfer, they left the windows rolled down and the keys in the ignition! Mind you, this is the main parking lot for a trauma center in the middle of the city; by no means secure. Well, several crews who were moving in and out of the hospital on calls knew this and saw this and decided that someone had to teach them a leason. (Again, I might have heard about this from someone else and was not there or involved. ) One of the other crews decided to "steal" the rig (but is it really stealing if you have the keys and the authority to drive it? LOL). The other main hospital was just 10 blocks away, so the crew took the rig to that hospital and secured it properly; waiting and hoping for the time when that first crew came back and found their rig gone.

Unfortunately, no one notified the supervisor of this plan (and had they, he probably would have encouraged this "corrective" action)... and unfortunately this first crew was really stupid... So what did they do when they got back 4 hours latter and noticed that their rig was "stolen"? Instead of calling the Supervisor, they called 911. The Highway Patrol came out, took a report, and put out a statewide BOL (be on the Lookout) for a white ambo (with blue and red lettering)! Mind you, no one had even thought to notify the company, dispatch, or the supervisor. When one of the other crews heard this (and knowing the real story), they had to step in and tell them where the ambo was... Let's just say that the Highway Patrol was not amused (more like ready to press charges for filling a false report), the Supervisor (who had to deal with the LEOs) was pissed, the first crew didn't talk to any of us for a week, and the "stealing" crew got the "supervisor-beat-down".

SO, JT... it could be worse... instead of "stealing" and ambo... you could have had an ambo stollen from you and/or deserve it... LOL

[Aidey]

That is one of those stories that shouldn't be funny at all, but is...

I once got in the wrong ambulance at the hospital, but I didn't drive away. The ambulance parking is only two lanes, and there were a ton of ambulances(all from our company I think) there when we dropped off our patient, so our rig was a couple back from the front of the line.

Well, while we were inside a couple ambs left. One of our co workers re-arranged the parking and pulled our ambulance forward so other people could pull in. Well, when I walked out of the hospital I went and got into the rig that was parked where mine had been....I got a bunch of funny looks....

FYI so the story makes sense, per company policy the ignition key stays in the ambulance, in the pocket on the visor when out of the rig. All of our door keys are universal, so the door key from Rig 20 will open the door to Rig 32 etc. So no, the ambulance was not left unlocked with the key in the ignition! lol

[mycrofft]

I was the new guy and the wisearse driver would say "Well take Unit 8), I would go jump into eight, and he would climb into 9 or 12...worked especially well when the shift just started and/or the unit he named was in obvious need of cleaning etc, before a pt got on board, so I'd jump intothe back and scurry, ready to buckle up at a moment's notice.
He never atually drove off though...nevermind

[MIkePrekopa]

not too much grief... but that is really funny... I can see how this could happen.

[Trauma's Mistress]

Originally Posted by JonTullos

I just started my first EMT-Basic job at a hospital-based service. For the last two weeks I've been doing orientation and finished that on Friday. The Basic scheduled for Saturday called out so I was asked to fill in, therefore I worked my first 24 yesterday.

I also managed to steal an ambulance.

My truck was assigned to transfer a patient to another facility. The other crew's truck was parked where I normally would pull up my truck to load a patient so I have to move mine. Somehow, as we're getting ready to go, I get the rigs mixed up. By the time it's all said and done, I managed to load the patient onto the other crew's truck and drove off in it. I had no idea I had taken the wrong truck until after we left the hospital. My medic laughed his head off. Yes, it was a truck that belonged to us, it just wasn't the truck that my medic and I were assigned to.

I still can't believe I did this! I've already received lots of grief about this, including (as we're going out the door to respond to an MVC) an ER tech yelling to me, "don't steal anymore ambulances!" to a couple of phone calls since I got home this morning. Lord only knows what grief awaits me when I report for my 48 on Thursday.

So that's that. Go ahead, and let me have it. BTW, has anyone done any bonehead moves on their first day "on their own?" Surely I'm not the only one.

Jon

LMAO ! Sorry but this is too funny !