Newspapers / The Brunswick Beacon (Shallotte, … / July 22, 1993, edition 1 / Page 17
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Team Effort Means Quick Response To Resid (Continued From Paj-e 1-B) (11111 1 1 1 1 1 enfs, Visitors In Need A deputy radios that things don't look quite right at the old woman's home on Morgan Road. The gas stove has been knocked over. The valve was left on. He wants a detec tive to look things over. The shcrifl has been monitoring the radio traffic and telephones the 911 center. He wants to notify the chief deputy, the chief dctcctivc. the patrol lieutenant, the State Bureau of Investigation and the coroner. Hill picks up the phone and starts dialing. A callcr reports a minor traffic ac cident in Long Beach. Allen alerts a deputy and keys the information into a computer' linked to the N.C. Highway Patrol. Covington's domestic dispute ap pears to have cooled down. But as a former policeman, he knows that these arc among the most dangerous situations an officer can face. He ra dios back to the deputy every lew minutes to check on him. "Sometimes you just get a gut feeling that things aren't right," he says. "I know if I was out there alone in a life-threatening situation, I'd want somebody checking on me." A convenience store clerk calls to report that a gasoline customer has driven off without paying. Allen alerts a Shallottc police officer. A detective radios the sheriff that there appears to be "no foul play" at the house on Morgan Road. An am bulance reports itself en route from there to The Brunswick Hospital. Another call comes in, reporting that someone has passed out at the Sunset Beach Pier. Probably from the heat. Hill sets off the pagers and broadcasts the rescue message. Al len alerts the Sunset Beach Police. Covington calls the bridge tender to make sure it remains open for emer gency vehicles. The shift members work together like a well-rehearsed musical group, trading duties and filling in for each other without a word of instruction. Most calls are answered on the first ring. Chairs roll back and forth ac ross the floor as telephone messages arc relayed to the appropriate dis patcher. Covington takes another call. A 9 1 1 hang-up. The screen displays the number of a pay phone at the Welcome Center on U.S. 17. He dis patches a deputy and calls back. No answer. He looks up the office num ber and calls. No problem. He noti fies the deputy. Someone reports a fight in pro gress on Hewett Burton Road in Bolivia. One combatant has been cut. Allen radios a deputy. Hill pages rescue. Emergency Mcdical Technicians Tammy Brown and Allen Howarth jump into an ambulance and report that EMS-72 is "10-17" (en route to the scene). Howarth switches on the lights and siren and pulls on a pair of rub ber gloves. Brown checks a street map for the location. Trees fly past in a blur of green. Ahead of the speeding ambulance, it seems as if cars take forever to hear the scream ing siren and pull over. "Right now we don't know if this person has a little cut on his finger or if he's totally cut up," Howarth said. "Until we do know, we have to prepare for the worst." "C-Com to EMS-72," Allen's RESCUE W ORKERS prepare to transport a heart patient from Ocean Isle li each to The Brunswick Hospital. voicc comcs through the radio. "Authority of deputy on sccnc, 10 22 (disregard) the call. Subject has been taken by POV (personally owned vehicle)." The gloves, the siren, the lights go off as EMS-72 slows down and turns back. Brown fills out another ambulance call report, one of many that will indicate that they prepared for the worst, hoped for the best and came back empty. Brunswick County's EMS system is designed with numerous layers of back-up and multiple levels of re sponse. When an emergency call goes out, several units react immedi ately: A fast-moving "first responder" goes straight to the sccnc to assess the situation and begin stabilizing the patient. Sometimes it is a deputy with EMT training or a rescue vol unteer in a private vehicle. Or it may be one of the two EMS shift super visors, whose vehicles arc equipped to provide everything an ambulance has, except transport. Simultaneously, ambulances roll from the nearest volunteer rescue squad and the county EMS center ? in case both arc needed or one breaks down. First rcsponders often have the patient ready to transport when the ambulance arrives, saving precious minutes that can make the difference between life and death. Meanwhile, C-Com has been han dling its usual variety of traffic: Several minor traffic accidents. A few brush fires. More domestic dis putes. The usual breaking-and-enter ing rcporLs. An aborted water res cue. A complaint from a woman who says somebody threw a shark in her face. A grandmother inquiring about her missing grandson, who turned out to be in jail. Allen lakes a call from a woman reporting "a dog iocked in a car" in Calabash. She broadcasts the infor mation to a deputy. There is an un usually long pause before he re sponds. "A dog blocking a car?" he asks. "That must be an awfully big dog or a mighty small car!" The centcr erupts in laughter be fore Allen composes herself and re r peats the broadcast, enunciating the words "loeked in." Another call comcs in and it's back to business. An elderly woman with a history of heart problems is complaining of chest pains at the Ocean Isle Beach Motel. It is one of the most frequent? and potentially serious? rcscuc tails. EMTs Gaythcr Simmons and Michael Parks have an ambulance rolling in less than a minute. They expect to be waved oil, since other volunteer squads arc much closer. But they keep moving, fast, as if they are the only unit for a hundred miles. When the screaming ambulance crests the bridge to Ocean Isle Beach they see the flashing lights of a volunteer unit that has just arrived on the scene. First responder Tern Davis has the patient "packaged" and ready to go. The county ambu lance will make the transport, allow ing the volunteer squad to keep its vehicle in the area. "If possible, we try to take it easy with cardiac patients," said Sim mons, explaining his relatively pla cid maneuvering toward The Bruns wick Hospital. "The lights and siren can upset them." He keeps Davis aware of any sud den changes in direction as she con tinues working on the patient, a 68 year-old West Virginia woman. Sim mons announces that the ambulance has reached a long straight section of roadway, allowing Davis to start an intravenous injection. Outside the emergency room, Davis fills out the report and Sim mons readies the ambulance for an r# Original W Miniature 1, Oil Paintings by V. Ryan Lauzon j Sold exclusively at HOI.IJKN HKACII CAUSKWAY K42H030 > other run as the patient's family awaits word of her condition. They are relieved to hear good news from the doctor and impressed by the ser vice she received. "They were there very quickly," says Geneva Jennelle. "Everyone did such a wonderful job." Back at C-Com, Covington, Allen and Mill brief their night-shift re placements and unwind for a few minutes before driving home. An othi r phone rings. They glance at the control panels to see which red light is Hashing. This tune a different hand reaches for the receiver. "Brunswick County 91 1 ...Do you have an emergency?" Darla's Crafts and Novelties Consignment Shop Mon-Sat 9-8. Sun 1-6 Holden Beach Causeway S3842-8787G3 Brunswick County F.O.P. LODGE #53 is proud to sponsor a SHOP-WITH-A-COP PROGRAM to clothe underprivileged children in Brunswick County. Phone solicitation begins July 21 or call to donate at 919-278-1722. THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT! Ktttttt ttttttt it lit it tit S 0 Extra Low Prices... Everyday! London Broil Roast Or Top Round Roast $ USD A Choice Beef Tyson/ Holly Farms Grade A Who! Fryer Sweet Large Juicy <r Sun World Superior White or Red Seedless Grapes Country Pride Breast Filets & QQ Tenders V ""I Extra Lean Fresh Pork Picnics 69^ All Varieties - Jimmy Dean Roll Sausage 1*59 Lb. Celery - stalk ^ x, _ _ __ luiuaiuCS Cucumbers Eggplant Yellow Squash Kellogg's Cereal Charmin 14.8 Oz. Roll White Bath Tissue Rice Krispies Regularly $2.97 Treats Match Light $099 1 Detergent 599 98 Oz. 42 Load/ 106 Oz. With Bleach Regularly $6.99 SXXXXXXXX 8 Lb. Regularly $4.19 dlBXCOal 2 Liter - Dlel Pepsi. Crystai I'epsi. Diet Crystal Pepsi. Mtn. Dew. Diet Mtn. Dew. Caffeine Free Pepsi. Caffeine Free Diet Pepsi. 7-Up. Diet 7-Up Pepsi Cola m FOOD LION 6 Pack/ 12 Oz. Cans - Pepsi. Diet Pepsi Mtn. Dew. Diet Mtn. Dew We Reserve The Right To Limit Quantities. Prices in this ad good 1QQ Wed., July 21 thru Tues. July 27. 1993. 3 xxxxxxxx\
The Brunswick Beacon (Shallotte, N.C.)
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July 22, 1993, edition 1
17
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