WASHINGTON — Two firefighters in Stafford County, Virginia, have been placed on administrative leave for their decision to take a sick little girl to the hospital in a fire engine instead of waiting for an ambulance.
Falmouth Volunteer firefighters Capt. James Kelley and Sgt. Virgil Bloom responded to a call for a child in seizure last Saturday.
Kelley says the child was limp and turning blue and he believed the ambulance was too far away to save the girl’s life.
“Pediatrics do go downhill very quickly if they’re not taken care of very quick,” says Kelley.
The fire engine is not equipped with restraints and certain medications that are available in an ambulance, but Kelley administered oxygen to the 18-month-old child on the way to the hospital and says he saw her revive.
“I’m glad the child is doing better. She’s made a full recovery and she’s home and resting well and that’s all that matters to me right now,” Kelley says.
In an emailed statement, Mark Doyle, spokesman for the Stafford County Fire and Rescue Department says “a potential regulatory compliance issue is under review” so the department is unable to comment.
