# Scariest Moment in EMS



## Giobobo1 (Nov 2, 2013)

a little late for the Halloween post, but what is your scariest moment while in EMS?


----------



## chaz90 (Nov 2, 2013)

Spooky or "I'm about to die"? 

Spooky wise, we had a creepy 2 AM call in the rain for a guy who was completely conscious but never said a word to us. Crazy writing all over his walls that said all kinds of bizarre things, and an adult daughter that was standing out in the rain in a nightgown and bare feet and just pointing inside the house. 

The one I thought might kill me was when the ambulance I was in lost its brakes coming up on a turn.


----------



## Akulahawk (Nov 2, 2013)

Giobobo1 said:


> a little late for the Halloween post, but what is your scariest moment while in EMS?


Scariest moment... the first day I climbed into an ambulance.:rofl:


----------



## Hunter (Nov 2, 2013)

Used to be a truck art my old company that the ac unit howled, first time I heard that we were parked in a dark parking lot at 3am about to try and sleep...


----------



## Handsome Robb (Nov 2, 2013)

Transporting an ACS patient and my partner calls me to the pass through and tells me that we have no brakes. 

Parking brake got it stopped, we were only going about 30mph, but I was not a happy camper and neither was the patient.


----------



## mycrofft (Nov 3, 2013)

When a fast freight train flew through a blind rail crossing I was approaching in residential Omaha without warning horn and the signals didn't work in time. 

Oh, and the one I keep telling about the old Victorian house and no one knew where the knife-wielding rapist/murderer was. (Yes, really).


----------



## blindsideflank (Nov 6, 2013)

^^^ funny I was gonna say the same things.
Hitting a moose
Had a car come head on at us with the drivers door open and no driver, I hit the horn and a head popped up and the door closed and she swerved back into her lane (I guess she dropped something and opened her door to lean over to get it while driving?) it was so bizarre.

And the truly scariest was walking into a house and there was blood smeared on every wall and dripping from the ceiling. We heard faint crying and there was a girl that barely had a face due to a bat and I won't mention what he did with a screwdriver. The setting seemed so surreal that we both froze for a second then recalled seeing a guy sneaking away in the dark as we pulled up.
That was a scoop and run situation


----------



## TheLocalMedic (Nov 6, 2013)

Scariest was walking up to a house (middle of the night, of course) and seeing the door already open a sliver.  Pushed it the rest of the way open to find a guy sitting in a chair right in front of me holding a knife and smiling at me in a dead fish-eye sort of way.  I 'bout :censored::censored::censored::censored: my britches, screamed like a six year old girl and dove off the stoop and into the bushes.


----------



## CALEMT (Nov 6, 2013)

TheLocalMedic said:


> Scariest was walking up to a house (middle of the night, of course) and seeing the door already open a sliver.  Pushed it the rest of the way open to find a guy sitting in a chair right in front of me holding a knife and smiling at me in a dead fish-eye sort of way.  I 'bout :censored::censored::censored::censored: my britches, screamed like a six year old girl and dove off the stoop and into the bushes.



I'm sorry man but that made me laugh... so far the scariest for me was having the brakes go out on the ambulance coming down a steep highway.


----------



## johnrsemt (Nov 6, 2013)

My scariest was a house with no power,  called for difficulty breathing:   walk in with an officer, holding a flashlight.   I saw the patient on the couch, just in time to hear the officer scream like a girl and RUN from the house.   I told the patient if he wants help he needs to come out to the ambulance and I left.
    Went back in with my partner and fire fighters with a bunch of flashlights, and the guys living room had 7 aquariums, with about 20 different snakes.

   Officer actually hyperventilated until he passed out over that one.


   A friend says his scariest time was when one of the back wheel/tire passed him on the freeway


----------



## abckidsmom (Nov 6, 2013)

My scariest moment was when we went deep in a housing project, to the upstairs back bedroom for a 400 pound woman in CHF with respiratory failure.  It was some time ago.  Today, she'd have been cured in a few minutes with CPAP...then, the answer was morphine, nitro, Lasix and nasal intubation.  

Somehow, they didn't send fire with us, so as we are trying to decide if we're going to get the show on the road in the bedroom while waiting for fire, the family is getting more and more agitated, and pulls a gun.  "She better live."

The patient was slightly more scared than us, she dragged herself up from death's door, and vaulted down the steps, collapsing on the stretcher at the bottom of the steps. 

It was an easy tube.  We were out of there!


----------



## Handsome Robb (Nov 6, 2013)

abckidsmom said:


> My scariest moment was when we went deep in a housing project, to the upstairs back bedroom for a 400 pound woman in CHF with respiratory failure.  It was some time ago.  Today, she'd have been cured in a few minutes with CPAP...then, the answer was morphine, nitro, Lasix and nasal intubation.
> 
> Somehow, they didn't send fire with us, so as we are trying to decide if we're going to get the show on the road in the bedroom while waiting for fire, the family is getting more and more agitated, and pulls a gun.  "She better live."
> 
> ...



Yea I'd say that's about the point I'd be hitting my panic button and shutting off my radio so homeboy doesn't here the world responding to his address emergent.


----------



## abckidsmom (Nov 6, 2013)

Robb said:


> Yea I'd say that's about the point I'd be hitting my panic button and shutting off my radio so homeboy doesn't here the world responding to his address emergent.



She got up so fast, I hit the button, but fire was out front, and this project was the "bad" one, that fire coming behind us woke up the cops sleeping on the corner, and it all got a lot better really quickly.

That was the good thing about working in the city.  When things go bad, you don't have long to wait for the help.  I do a lot more sucking up in the county, since it's me and my good customer service that keeps everyone happy.  The cops are at least 8 minutes away if I'm lucky, and that is WAY too long.


----------



## Handsome Robb (Nov 6, 2013)

Agreed. When seconds count the police department is minutes away...

It really depends where I am in our area, some I might be fighting for my life for 30 minutes plus if it comes down to it and other places you can't throw a rock without hitting either a trooper, city cop or university cop.

With that said, I agree about good customer service and ability to think on your feet keeping things gravy.


----------



## lightsandsirens5 (Nov 8, 2013)

Coming up to a single-wide, in the woods, at night, in the rain, with the power out. There was an ancient rapist van with the tires slashed out, parked sideways across the driveway with "KEEP OUT" spray painted on the side of it. Rottweilers chained all over the place in the yard. And I thought the officer was right behind us walking in. The moment the door opened and I could see a shotgun in the moonlight was the exact moment I realized the officer wasn't with us any more. Never been so scared in my entire life. Turns out he didn't know his wife had called 911 and had just seen us out there. Told us we were going to have to wait outside. Until the officer finally appeared around the corner. 

The oh-shoot-I'm-going-to-die moment was watching a tractor-trailer upstream of us loosing control on the slushy road while working an MVC on the back side of a semi-blind hilltop.


----------



## abckidsmom (Nov 8, 2013)

We recently went for a cardiac arrest and arrived at the address, a compound surrounded by a twelve foot wooden fence, flying a confederate flag. We nosed up to the gate, it opened, we pulled through, and it closed behind us. 

I told my 18 year old partner, "Stay right by me and we are working this no matter what.  You see and hear nothing. You are here to help."

We were it- the first responders scratched and the cops were NUA. It was a long time till more people showed up. 

Slow code to china. I thought that was a thing of the past.


----------



## chaz90 (Nov 8, 2013)

abckidsmom said:


> We recently went for a cardiac arrest and arrived at the address, a compound surrounded by a twelve foot wooden fence, flying a confederate flag. We nosed up to the gate, it opened, we pulled through, and it closed behind us.
> 
> I told my 18 year old partner, "Stay right by me and we are working this no matter what.  You see and hear nothing. You are here to help."
> 
> ...



Yikes. I'm normally against working any slow code and all about terminating efforts on scene/calling it DOA if necessary, but I can totally get on board with this one. In fact, I could potentially see breaking another one of my rules and scooping and running with this code depending on the attitude of the family...


----------



## mycrofft (Nov 8, 2013)

*The biggest relief as well.*

Had one moment, a boat had overturned running fast and parallel to, then landed on top of, a rock-fill dam. Like a four story drop on one side, water on the other, this open top power boat on it's back, only lights from our flashlights. Strong smell of gasoline.

The 911 caller said she thought she was the only one to get away, out of four.

I volunteered to go under, the two Staties and my partner lifted the boat about a foot. There was a glistening grey and red mottled mass about the size of a small bowling ball. 

Nope. Not brains this time. Was a styro cooler the gasoline got on and shrank it, so the melted styro with the Nebraska Harry Husker logo looked like blood and brains.
Earlier that week we'd had a kid who'd shot his brains out, so I was all ready for "Oh, crap, not again".

PS: I posted about this before:
http://www.emtlife.com/showthread.php?t=10015&highlight=Husker


----------



## comppro (Nov 18, 2013)

Scariest moment so far was when we got called to an accidental shooting to the head. Dispatch said scene was believed to be safe but police were on the way. 

We get on scene just behind the trooper and family members were standing outside crying. We went in and found a young guy had stuck a gun in his mouth and pulled the trigger, wasn't much left, obvious DOA. We are getting ready to walk back outside when my partner whispers " where's the gun", I did a double take and sure enough, no gun to be seen, so we walk back out, and go sit in the truck while the officer talks to the family members.

Turns out dad had walked in and seen it and moved the gun. We were a little nervous for a few minutes half expecting a family member to pull the gun and start shooting.


----------



## Glucatron (Dec 27, 2013)

comppro said:


> Scariest moment so far was when we got called to an accidental shooting to the head. Dispatch said scene was believed to be safe but police were on the way.
> 
> We get on scene just behind the trooper and family members were standing outside crying. We went in and found a young guy had stuck a gun in his mouth and pulled the trigger, wasn't much left, obvious DOA. We are getting ready to walk back outside when my partner whispers " where's the gun", I did a double take and sure enough, no gun to be seen, so we walk back out, and go sit in the truck while the officer talks to the family members.
> 
> Turns out dad had walked in and seen it and moved the gun. We were a little nervous for a few minutes half expecting a family member to pull the gun and start shooting.



That would definitely be an eye opener!


----------



## emt11 (Dec 28, 2013)

Robb said:


> Yea I'd say that's about the point I'd be hitting my panic button and shutting off my radio so homeboy doesn't here the world responding to his address emergent.



Oh how lucky you are. The panic button on our radios are disabled :blink:. Now it just serves as the scan on/off button. That and with my company, if you request PD, our dispatch is going to want to know why, all the while delaying getting PD enroute to us.


----------



## Handsome Robb (Dec 28, 2013)

emt11 said:


> Oh how lucky you are. The panic button on our radios are disabled :blink:. Now it just serves as the scan on/off button.




We test our panic buttons at the start of every shift.

They don't get used that often but they do get used, and they have saved a few lives. The way this city is headed it would be negligent to send us out there without them.


----------



## unleashedfury (Dec 28, 2013)

emt11 said:


> Oh how lucky you are. The panic button on our radios are disabled :blink:. Now it just serves as the scan on/off button. That and with my company, if you request PD, our dispatch is going to want to know why, all the while delaying getting PD enroute to us.



Same here you must manually call PD, Dispatch asks for a reason too, So I'm sure the guy who was a gun pointed at you wants to here you calling for help. 

Scariest call, Being called for a "suicide attempt" it was state police jurisdiction and they didn't have a car available at the moment. We rolled up to have some guy who looked like a undead hillbilly round the corner with a shotgun. State Police found a car real fast for us then. 

Spookiest was this one ED we used to go to before the hospital closed down it hadn't been remodeled in probably 60 years, But it always reminded me of the setup in the Saw Movies where jigsaw lies when he was dying from cancer


----------



## Handsome Robb (Dec 28, 2013)

See, I'd never go into that scene until PD was there...different areas I guess.

We stage on self inflicted GSWs, some crews will go in, not me. Self inflicted, per who, is my question.


----------



## unleashedfury (Dec 30, 2013)

Robb said:


> See, I'd never go into that scene until PD was there...different areas I guess.
> 
> We stage on self inflicted GSWs, some crews will go in, not me. Self inflicted, per who, is my question.



True very true, One of my more famous quotes is "it don't say HERO on my paycheck" 

Problem is I worked in a rural area where police where often not on duty or non exsistant, at night they would have one state police patrol car for the county. so if he was coming from the opposite side at a good pace it would still take an hour. 

Where I am at now PD shows up on all EMS calls unless truly tied up, if its questionable whether PD should roll Dispatch advises to stage.


----------



## johnrsemt (Jan 9, 2014)

I used to work where we could get PD at the drop of a hat,   usually right after you trip over the steps,  and they fall out of the car's laughing.

Here if we are outside our home area it may take up to 1-2 hours for PD to show  (and that is if it is important,  like you are being shot at)  otherwise it maybe a couple of days before they get there


----------



## johnrsemt (Jan 9, 2014)

My scariest:

  Walked in the mobile home of a frequent flyer  with a fairly new partner:  we talked to him for a couple of minutes  (Usually he called, we talked to him,  we left with a refusal:  he was lonely more than anything).    This time he got between us and the door,    and as he was talking he walked by the kitchen Island and grabbed a handgun off of it.  he never pointed it at us,  but in our general direction.

  Our radios had the orange emergency button,  but every time someone hit it, dispatch would say  "Unit XX you are in emergency status,  do you need help"    real useful.     I had a shoulder mike on,  reached to the radio,  turned the volume down,  and keyed it up and held if for 15 minutes, while I was talking to the man.  (Dispatch could block out that radio dispatch so that it didn't lock out the entire channel; and put it onto an ops channel).

   I talked to him,  nicely;  along the lines of "sir,  you don't want to hold a gun on us"  etc,     later I heard that dispatch got over 100 radio calls on the main channel about us  (including a crew screwing around).   Nice thing the radio ID'd to dispatch who we were,  and they knew where we were.

   We finally were able to talk to him, and move to the door    as I was backing out, right behind my partner (who as she went out the door she disappeared  {that scared me as much as the guy with the gun}  turned out a cop grabbed her and threw her off the porch).     I cleared the door, with the guy right behind me, I jumped off the porch  and a K-9 took out the guy.


----------



## Glucatron (Jan 10, 2014)

johnrsemt said:


> My scariest:
> 
> Walked in the mobile home of a frequent flyer  with a fairly new partner:  we talked to him for a couple of minutes  (Usually he called, we talked to him,  we left with a refusal:  he was lonely more than anything).    This time he got between us and the door,    and as he was talking he walked by the kitchen Island and grabbed a handgun off of it.  he never pointed it at us,  but in our general direction.
> 
> ...



That's crazy!


----------



## johnrsemt (Jan 17, 2014)

Yes he was


----------



## DrankTheKoolaid (Jan 17, 2014)

Working a GSW victim DEEP in the woods/dope growing country at night with 6 officers around us with m16s guarding us since the shooter was hiding or bailed into the woods. Was the best experience for my intern at the time she could possibly have.


----------



## DesertMedic66 (Jan 17, 2014)

My scariest moment would be driving thru the middle of hurricane Sandy code 3 (required to). 2 EMT/Medics up front and 6 EMT/Medics in the back of a type II ambulance. We were passing semi trucks that were flipped over from the wind. Windshield wipers were being ripped off the ambulances from the wind. We were entering a tunnel in East Pennsylvania and started to hydroplane. As soon as we felt the back end of the ambulance start to slide to the side all of us in back gave a death stair and quickly grabbed anything we could hold on to. 

Luckily the Medic who was driving was able to steer into the slide in the middle if the tunnel and get the ambulance under control.


----------

