California Medic Aids Driver Who Rammed Ambulance

Ambulance medics in Bakersfield, California, were praised after continuing to administer care to a patient they were transporting on February 20 when a car struck their vehicle – and coming to the aid of the driver who hit them.

Video shows EMT Chelsey Hepp making a lefthand turn on Saturday evening, February 20, before capturing Hepp’s split-second realization that another vehicle had run a red light and was coming toward her at a high speed. The impact wrecked the ambulance, which was transporting a patient to the hospital at the time of the incident.

After reporting the accident, paramedic Kevin McClanahan continued caring for the patient in the wrecked ambulance, while Hepp, hearing shouts that someone “needed help” outside the cab, began administering aid to the driver of the other vehicle.

The EMT and paramedic were praised for “reacting in a manner that is nothing short of astonishing,” Hall Ambulance Director of Media Services Mark Corum said in a press release.

Hall Ambulance said it released photos and video of the crash for educational purposes and as a “vivid reminder” that motorists should remain aware when driving and obey all traffic signs and signals. Photos show the extent of the damage to the cab of the ambulance. Credit: Hall Ambulance via Storyful