A paramedic crew from the Western Cape Government Health Emergency Medical Service was ambushed, assaulted and robbed in the Happy Valley informal settlement in Blackheath on Monday.
The province’s Emergency Medical and Forensic Pathology Services EMS spokesman, Robert Daniels, said: “Four men carrying knives and broken bottles forced their way into an EMS ambulance as the crew was busy loading a patient.
“The attackers demanded the crew’s personal valuables including wallets, mobile phones and handbags after which they stabbed the female paramedic with a broken bottle.”
“The other paramedic was threatened with a knife, but fortunately not harmed. Further to this the attackers damaged the EMS Ambulance by ripping the mobile data terminal from the vehicle’s dashboard, effectively rendering the vehicle out of service for several weeks.”
Daniels said the crew received medical attention and were offered trauma counselling after the attack and are currently off duty.
“This attack will not diminish our commitment to continue providing emergency medical care, but the public should note that the safety of our emergency care workers throughout the department is our first priority. An attack on an EMS ambulance and crew is an attack on your own community,” Daniels said.
The incident is the third assault on emergency medical personnel in Cape Town in less than a month.
ER24’s Werner Vermaak has condemned the attack, urging people not to buy stolen medical equipment, and to piemp skelms who attack paramedics.
“By keeping quiet, it will eventually affect you and your loved ones.”