AMBULANCE Victoria is investigating how paramedics incorrectly assessed a man as deceased following a car accident near Bacchus Marsh, as reports emerged that at least 90 minutes passed before emergency service workers realised the victim was actually alive.
The man, identified by police as a 30-year-old from Hawthorn, was yesterday in a critical condition at the Royal Melbourne Hospital after suffering life-threatening injuries when his sports car struck another vehicle and flipped in the early hours of Sunday.
Police said the accident happened on the Western Highway at Bacchus Marsh just before 2am. State Emergency Service volunteers charged with removing the man’s body from the wreckage discovered a pulse some time after paramedics had allegedly declared the man dead and left the scene.
Tow truck driver Trevor Oliver told the ABC the man was left in the vehicle for at least an hour after paramedics left the scene.
“After about 15 minutes (paramedics) declared the driver dead … [he] was still in the car upside down at this particular point in time,” Mr Oliver said.
“They, over a period of another 30 minutes left the scene, where the driver was still in the car.
“The police started taking their measurements and photographs, which is pretty standard procedure for a crash investigation. And the driver was still upside down in the vehicle, and remained that way most probably for a good hour.”
Ambulance Victoria regional manager Simon Thomson said the service was investigating how long it took for the same ambulance crew to return to the scene.
“I’m not 100per cent clear on that detail yet so we’ve launched an investigation, as we’ve said, and it’s very important that obviously we get the facts and the timeline but I’m aware that it was some time later and we had left the scene,” he told 3AW.
He said it was possible that initial reports of a 30-minute delay were correct. “I think that is absolutely possible,” he said.
The victim’s Porsche is believed to have collided with the back of a four-wheel-drive before crashing into a barrier and rolling over.
Three men aged in their 20s from Melton who were travelling in the 4WD were not injured, according to police.
Information to Crime Stoppers on 1800333000.
-The Age
