The ambulance, which was not carrying patients, blew its whistle illegally and was speeding. It lost control and hit the driver of the truck.

The ambulance was not carrying patients, but it was still honking its horn and speeding. It was illegal to enjoy road privileges. The result was that the vehicle lost control and killed people!

An ambulance from a registered private ambulance company in Yuli Town, Hualien County was traveling along the Guangfu Road section of the Provincial Highway 9 yesterday afternoon when it was speeding on a rainy day. The vehicle lost control and skidded into the opposite lane and hit a small truck. The driver of the truck, surnamed Gao, 75 years old, lost his breathing and heartbeat on the spot and died in hospital. It was found that the ambulance driver was not on dispatch duty, but was speeding and honking the siren because the nurse in the car had to rush back to the hospital for a night shift.

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Police investigation revealed that the private ambulance company responsible for the accident was registered in Yuli Town, Hualien, and was usually responsible for transferring patients from three hospitals in Hualien's southern district to Hualien. After the ambulance transferred the patient to Hualien Tzu Chi Hospital yesterday, it was not on duty when it returned to Yuli in the afternoon, and the ambulance company had no dispatch record. It was said that the nurse on board was rushing back to the hospital in Yuli to work the night shift (from 4 p.m. to 12 p.m.). The ambulance driver actually blew the whistle in violation of regulations and drove at high speed, causing an unfortunate accident.

When the private ambulance arrived at the Guangfu section of the Provincial Highway 9, it was already 3:30 in the afternoon, and it was still 50 kilometers away from Yuli. If the speed limit on the road section was 60 kilometers per hour, the journey would take about an hour. However, the car was traveling extremely fast, and the police said it should be speeding.

The front of the minivan collapsed and the driver died in vain

The police reviewed the driving recorder images of the vehicle behind the ambulance that caused the accident. Preliminary inspection found that it was raining heavily, but the ambulance was still honking at high speed. The road was slippery in the rain. After getting off the bridge, the ambulance suddenly lost control and skidded into the opposite lane. It collided with a white pickup truck on the northbound lane and sideswiped a green Deli truck. Due to the force of the impact, the ambulance hit its wheels and deformed. The front of the white pickup truck was severely crushed and deformed, and its parts were scattered on the ground.

Collision with van again, killing 1 and injuring 4

When firefighters were informed and rushed to the scene, the 75-year-old driver of the minivan who was hit was trapped in the vehicle. Firefighters used sabotage equipment to rescue the driver, performed advanced cardiovascular life-saving surgery (ACLS) on the spot, and was sent to the hospital by ambulance for emergency treatment. However, he was pronounced dead at 4:40 p.m.

The 45-year-old driver of the private ambulance who caused the accident, surnamed Yang, was slightly injured, the nurse on the ambulance suffered lacerations to his face, and the driver of the other van that was hit was slightly injured. All three drivers had normal driving licenses. The police conducted on-site mapping and evidence collection, and also obtained driving recorder images. The prosecutors will launch follow-up investigations into the responsibility for the accident.

No emergency whistle, transfer to referee

The Emergency Medical Assistance Law stipulates that ambulances are not allowed to use sirens and red flashing lights unless there is an emergency. However, there were no patients on board the car when the accident occurred, which did not meet the emergency status recognized by the law, but it still blew the siren in violation of the law. According to the law, the ambulance operator may be fined NT$60,000 to NT$300,000. The police said that after compiling the information, they would submit it to the competent authorities for adjudication.