The mayor of Tumbler Ridge is speaking out after an ambulance ended up in the ditch while transporting a patient to Dawson Creek.
The accident occurred on Saturday, January 3, just before 5 pm.
The ambulance crashed on Highway 52, about 20 kilometres outside Tumbler Ridge.
“I knew this was going to happen eventually if we continue to send paramedics on the roads during the winter season,” Mayor Darryl Krakowka said.
Photos from the scene show potentially dangerous driving conditions on the highway, with roads covered by snow.
The mayor says neither the paramedics nor the patient involved in the accident were injured, but notes it could have been a lot worse.
The Tumbler Ridge Health Centre’s emergency department has been operating without after-hours coverage since the beginning of September.
That leaves the community with two ambulances to transport patients needing emergency care to the nearest hospital.
A second ambulance had to be deployed after the crash to complete the transport to Dawson Creek.
Krakowka says the situation left Tumbler Ridge without emergency care until the trip was completed.
“This is more proof that the current system is not working,” the mayor said.