(The following column by Susan K. Lamb appeared on the Suwannee Democrat website on January 21.)
LIVE OAK, Fla. — It was a sight to see, that tiny female paramedic maneuvering down a 20-foot ladder balanced from the window of an Amtrak sightseeing coach stopped in the middle of US 129 in downtown Live Oak. Everything around the train came to a screeching halt while more than a dozen rescue, fire and law enforcement officers worked to safely remove a heart attack victim from the train by sliding him down the ladder to a waiting ambulance.
Traffic stopped on both the north and southbound sides of US 129 as the passenger train blocked the road, office workers stopped work and stood outside their places of employment to watch while kids rode by on bicycles and a new non-street legal scooter, taking it all in.
Those watching got a lesson in what many already know – local paramedics, fire and law enforcement work together to give the best service available anywhere right here in good old Live Oak.
The incident began at about 1:21 p.m. Jan. 19 when a call came in from the Amtrak train that a passenger was having a heart attack and an ambulance was requested. The train stopped at the US 129 crossing right in the middle of town where it was met on the north side by Live Oak Fire Fighters/EMTs and Florida Highway Patrol Officer Kin Weaver and on the south side by Suwannee County EMS, County Fire and Live Oak Police. Paramedics boarded the train and stabilized the patient before realizing they could not remove the 6 ft. 6 inch tall gentlemen from the train by the stairway because it was a spiral staircase. They quickly put a 20-foot ladder through the large window on the scenic lounge car, bracing it on the highway. As about 8-10 people, including several volunteers, braced the ladder, Weaver and others inside the train, including Amtrak employees, Live Oak Fire fighters and EMS Lt. Robert Eyer strapped the man to a backboard and attached nylon rope to the backboard for safety. Paramedic Stephanie Whitehurst scurried up the ladder while bystanders, including a conductor and another Amtrak employee, watched transfixed as the patient was slowly eased through the window feet first, where Whitehurst was waiting to guide the bottom of the backboard slowly down the ladder. Whitehurst moved backwards down the ladder on her belly, aided by ground support and those inside the train all the way down until the patient was safely at the bottom where about 10 people assisted in putting the patient onto a stretcher and safely loading him into the ambulance.
It all went without a flaw and seemed so effortless. As it turns out, a recent training session prepared the paramedics for this very same scenario, they said later.
The patient, who cannot be identified because of the new patient confidentiality laws, was transported to Shands at Live Oak.
Amtrak assistant conductor Amin Haus said he had never seen a rescue like it. However, he did say he once had a person who fell between two cars and broke a leg, necessitating the disconnection of the train car which had to be pulled away so the person could be rescued.
As soon as the patient was safely in the care of EMS, the Amtrak Miami-bound passenger train headed out with a whistle to complete its trip.
Paramedics, fire and police all returned to doing what they do on a daily basis – taking excellent care of the citizens of Live Oak and Suwannee County.
Those involved in the rescue Monday included Paramedics Whitehurst, Lt. Robert Eyer and Paul Haas, EMT Shawn Hillengas, Fire fighter/EMTs Lt. Hugh Glenn and Steve Oaks with Suwannee County, Live Oak Fire Fighters Morris Timmons and De’Andra Bright, FHP Trooper Weaver, Suwannee County Jail Administrator Capt. John Mills, Live Oak Police Officers Jason Roundtree and Derek Slaughter and EMT student Bobby Wells with prayers and other assistance by passersby.
Be proud you live in Suwannee County.