Phuket cabby faces charges after ambulance blocked, leading to patient’s death, sparking outrage
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A patient died before reaching medical care after the ambulance he was in was delayed.
PHOTO: THE NATION/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
PHUKET – The Phuket police have filed charges against a local taxi driver following the circulation of a viral video showing an ambulance being obstructed in the Kathu district.
The video, which spread widely across social media platforms on April 29, sparked public outrage.
According to the Kamala Subdistrict Administrative Organisation Rescue Centre, a patient died before reaching medical care after the ambulance he was in was delayed.
The centre posted a video clip showing a taxi driver refusing to give way to the ambulance, despite its siren and emergency lights being activated.
The incident occurred on Kamala-Patong Road in Phuket’s Kathu district. The taxi was being driven in the middle lane and the driver allegedly refused to switch lanes for several minutes, even as the ambulance approached with lights flashing and siren blaring.
The patient, a 77-year-old man with a history of heart disease, had collapsed earlier in a durian orchard in Kamala, a town on the west coast of Phuket.
After being contacted by the man’s family, the rescue centre coordinated an emergency transfer to Patong Hospital.
The rescue centre said the man’s daughter, who is a nurse, performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation throughout the journey.
However, the delay caused by the taxi allegedly blocking the ambulance en route to the hospital prevented timely treatment, and the patient was later pronounced dead.
Following the incident, Patong Hospital and the local police reviewed CCTV and dashboard camera footage.
Patong Police Station has since contacted the taxi driver and filed two charges: obstructing an emergency vehicle and violating the rights of a patient. Legal proceedings are now under way. THE NATION/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
