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This Week in EMS: A Recap for January 12 - 18, 2008
Among this week's major emergency incidents, a British Airways jet carrying 152 people crash-landed Thursday at Heathrow Airport in London, injuring 19 people.
The impact tore apart the underside of the plane, damaged its wings and ripped off two of the plane's giant wheel units. Fire personnel surrounded the Boeing 777 after it landed, spraying fire retardant foam around the aircraft, and all passengers were evacuated.
London Ambulance transported some passengers from the scene. In total 19 people were being treated at area hospitals for minor injuries. British Airways said one person suffered a broken leg.
The cause of the crash was under investigation Friday, and the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board was sending a team of investigators to assist.
For more on this visit Jet Crash-Lands in London; 19 Hurt.
This week the Maryland EMS community mourned the loss of Baltimore County Firefighter/Paramedic Jarrett Dixon, 36.
While on a treadmill in Station 5 on Jan.9, he started experiencing chest pains. He got into the back of a unit and hooked himself up to a monitor. "He read his own strip," said Capt. Ed Sipes. He told me: "I've got to go to the hospital."
Dixon was treated and eventually released, but then went into cardiac arrest at his house on Jan. 12, and was rushed back to the hospital where he died.
A former flight medic with MedStar, Dixon pursued his dream of becoming a career firefighter in Baltimore County. But, he also remained active with the Liberty Road Vol. Fire Company.
Read the full EMSResponder.com article: Md. Paramedic/Firefighter Suffers Cardiac Arrest, Dies.
In the top U.S. emergency news this week, 25 people were injured, three critically, when a bus carrying workers to a Las Vegas casino drove off a freeway, crashed into a guardrail and caught fire on Thursday.
It appeared most people got off the bus before it was engulfed in flames, authorities said, but the bus driver was treated for second-degree burns to his legs.
The three critical patients were flown by medical helicopter to University Medical Center in Las Vegas, and 22 other people were taken to hospitals by ground ambulances.
To read more visit: Bus Crash on Nevada Highway Injures 25.
In an exclusive report this week, EMSResponder.com details this year's cuts to federally funded EMS-related programs.
A measure to assist states with the development of trauma facilities received no funding at all. Other EMS programs saw a 1.7 percent cut across the board.
The House and Senate grappled with the numbers for some time, trying to reach an agreement, said Lisa Meyer, vice president of Cornerstone Government Affairs.
For details read the report: EMS Programs See Reduced Federal Funding for 2008.
The saga continued this week in the investigation into the December San Francisco Zoo tiger attack and the emergency response that ensued.
This week the 911 tapes were released, and one of the victims admitted that the three men were intoxicated and that they shouted and waved at the tiger. One of the men also stood on the railing of the enclosure.
To read more and to listen an initial 911 recording in which one of the victims pleads for an ambulance and asks why it's taking so long, visit Tiger Attack 911 Tapes Released in San Francisco.
Industry News
National EMS Advisory Council Selected
Members of the National Emergency Medical Services Advisory Council have been announced by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
They will advise NHTSA on a myriad of EMS issues.
Those appointed to the council represent experts from various EMS venues across the country. It took authorities months to select the panel as they received more than 400 applications. Click above to learn about the selections.
EMSResponder.com Featured Column:
Author Paul Murphy illustrates a process to determine your best course of action when you find yourself faced with many competing priorities,
Click above to read Paul's full column.
EMSResponder.com Reminders:
It's time to nominate candidates for EMS Magazine's 23rd Annual Braun Industries/Monster Medic EMT/Paramedic of the Year Award.
Just tell us, in 500 words or less, why he or she deserves to be considered for this honor. The winner will receive a $600 check and free travel, lodging and registration for EMS EXPO 2008, October 13-17, in Las Vegas, Nevada, where the award will be presented.
Click above for the contest rules and online nomination form.
The EMSResponder.com Job Database has officially launched! Come by to submit a free job listing, to advertise a job, or to search for jobs by type or by location. Visit www.emsresponder.com/jobs.
EMSResponder.com Featured Job
EMS Regional Consultant -- State of Idaho
The current recruitment will be used to fill a vacancy at the Emergency Medical Services Bureau Office in Idaho Falls, with a service area covering 18 counties in Eastern Idaho.
The application closing date is January 30. For information and application instructions follow the link above.
Visit www.EMSResponder.com/jobs to find additional listings or to submit listings.
EMSResponder.com Hot Topics
Which do you like working for?
"Do you like working for the private services or for the fire department? ... Why would you choose one over the other?"
Click above to join the conversation, or start your own at www.emsresponder.com/forums.
EMSResponder.com Poll
Given the opportunity, how would you spend extra money at your EMS agency?
Visit the poll on the lower right side of EMSResponder.com to participate. View previous polls at www.EMSResponder.com/polls.
To submit a poll idea e-mail Heather.Caspi@cygnusb2b.com.
Other top headlines this week on EMSResponder.com:
- Florida Paramedics Begin Induced Hypothermia for Heart Attacks
- New Madison, WI Protocol Calls for CCR Over CPR
- Legislation Introduced in Response to MRSA Crisis
- Could Private Ambulance Have Saved Philadelphia Woman?
- Pulse Training Claim Disputed in San Antonio
About Heather Caspi, EMSResponder.com Editor-in-Chief
Heather Caspi has been a public safety journalist since 2000, beginning as a reporter for sister site Firehouse.com. She later became the assistant news editor for Firehouse.com and Officer.com, and led the launch of EMSResponder.com in 2005. She graduated from the University of Maryland with degrees in Journalism and English Language and Literature, and earned her EMT-B at Merritt College in Oakland, California. She can be reached at Heather.Caspi@cygnusb2b.com.
