# City Dept Amublance Stolen!!!!



## JDFEMS (Aug 8, 2006)

It always suprises me when someone decides to go for a joy ride in a vehicle that's not thiers. It's even more suprising to me when someone takes a city vehicle. This past weekend, one of the major city Fire/Rescue Depts in our area responded to a call and left thier unit unlocked. Someone out for a walk decided, "Hey, I've always wanted an ambulance...I wonder if I can hop on the freeway with this thing?" Now, I can understand the need for fast scene response, but call me crazy, but I remember the rules being: #1-You, #2-your partner, #3-everyone else!!! I would like to think that your unit would be covered under "personal space".  This particular unit was an older unit, so it lacked the "Secret Back door Button", but is that really any sort of excuse?? Luckily, the rig was recovered shortly thereafter...who'd of thunk it was hard to dive a 5 ton truck???  This Dept has had some egg on thier face for quite some time, so I guess it's just one more thing..........


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## DT4EMS (Aug 8, 2006)

It is happening more and more all the time. Don't let anyone fool you... it happens to police cars too.


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## JDFEMS (Aug 8, 2006)

*Re:*

Now that one suprises me most of all, you have a suspect, he's in cuffs and in the back of the car, behind the cage. All of a sudden, your car screams forward..... I just don't get the "lets not lock our doors" policy. I guess it's just because I had paranoid parents who wouldn't walk away from the car untill they knew for 100% the car was locked....


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## MMiz (Aug 8, 2006)

Our newer rigs have a nice ignition kill system.  When you get on scene you can flick the switch and take out the key.  If someone presses the brake in an attempt to put the ambulance into gear, it immediately kills the engine.  I can't understand why all of our units don't have the feature.


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## MedicPrincess (Aug 8, 2006)

We don't lock ours on scene, at the station, while were at lunch...really ever.  Pretty much the only time ours see the lock function is if 

1.  That particular station does not have a crew on duty that day.  Then the off going crew will lock it up, outside compartments included.

or

2.  One of us has our purse/wallet/day planner...something in there.  Then we only lock it if we are going inside to eat a meal somewhere.

I don't even think we have that secret back door button....Each set of drug keys has an extra ambulance key on it though, so I guess we could lock it and leave it running if we wanted to.  

But we don't.  

I sure as heck WISH someone would steal my truck.  We drive the Internationals.  Big, horrible riding, why would you put an ambulance on a dump truck frame monsters.  If we break down or whatever we get to swap into a 350.  Even the worst riding one rides beautiful in comparison.


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## c-spine (Aug 9, 2006)

something like that happened to one of the local first responders in my area. He was on scene and left his personal vehicle unlocked, but hid the keys. Some 19 year old kid stole the vehicle (a nice SUV) and was found a few miles down the road with said vehicle on top of him. The idiot flipped the SUV and ended up being the victim, with the owner of the SUV on scene as medical personnel. 

Can you say "irony?"


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## GaEMT (Aug 9, 2006)

When I was in college at an unnamed university, a fraternity stole a fire truck after a football game one afternoon....yes there was alcohol involved


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## JDFEMS (Aug 9, 2006)

One Question: "Where are you going??????? The vehicle you're in is MEANT to be Seen AND Heard!!!!!!!!


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## Tincanfireman (Aug 9, 2006)

c-spine said:
			
		

> Can you say "irony?"


 
Karma is everywhere, it seems...lol


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## Kendall (Aug 10, 2006)

I don't think any of my service's units have ever been stolen, but on stand-by handovers, I've seen a couple attempts. Luckily, the new Crestline's the city runs have the 'back door button.'

I've got to shake my head at some people - you had it dead on, EMS vehicles are meant to be seen and heard. Although - driving a code can be fun, under the right circumstances!


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## gradygirl (Aug 10, 2006)

Does this really surprise anyone, though? I mean, if a man can steal a tank and rampage through San Diego, people can and will steal emergency vehicles.

*The video is in German, sorry  *


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## c-spine (Aug 10, 2006)

A tank, huh? -writes a quick note to self to STAY OUT OF CALI-


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## Kendall (Aug 10, 2006)

That's bloody hillarious! I'm suprised the army wasn't called out! Were did he get the tank from, anyway?


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## ffemt8978 (Aug 10, 2006)

It happened several years ago, and there's a ton of video about it on the net and some of those shows like World's Wildest Police Videos.

From what I remember, the suspect was an EDP and an Army Vet (tank driver) that had some issues with the VA.  He stole the tank from a National Guard Armory and was trying to make his way to the VA Hospital before he got hung up on a median barrier and was eventually shot and killed by police.


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## JDFEMS (Aug 11, 2006)

That's exactly what happaned. The tank (if I remember correctly) was going to be decommisioned soon and was only used to practice driving skills.


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## fm_emt (Aug 15, 2006)

c-spine said:
			
		

> A tank, huh? -writes a quick note to self to STAY OUT OF CALI-



Yep. We also have crazy folks smashing 18 wheelers into the State Capitol building. 
You'd think the guy would have waited until he had a dangerous cargo, but noooOOoo he did it with a truckload of evaporated milk. (January 2001)

But hey, if you're gonna go out, might as well steal a tank. I've always wanted to drive a tank. That guy was probably having a blast.


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