Paramedics plan protest to highlight attacks
Paramedics are planning a protest march after another three attacks on separate Western Cape teams this weekend.
|||Cape Town - Paramedics are planning a protest march after more than 60 of them have come under attack when responding to calls.
The past weekend there were three attacks on separate Western Cape teams.
Garth Botha, a paramedic for the Western Cape EMS, described an attack on him and his partner as the “worst night shift as a medic”.
The pair responded to what they thought was a shooting incident, but which turned out to be a stabbing in Paarl.
He posted about his ordeal on Facebook, saying they were attacked by about 10 knife-wielding men who wanted to get to the patient.
“I think their intention was to kill him... they were like animals trying to break down the doors of the ambulance. They even broke one of the side windows by stabbing through it. Luckily we could get away.”
He said one of the men even hung on to the side of the ambulance for more than 200 metres.
Botha said going to work had become scary. Western Cape ambulance chief Pumzile Papu said that they have had enough of the attacks, which were costing them active staff members.
“The crew initially thought it was a shooting and when they respond to shootings, in some areas, they are escorted by police. When they got there they found a man with a bad stab wound and that is when the police left.”
He said the incident was the first one of the weekend; two others were reported, in Philippi and Harare.
“In Philippi a man tried to attack a crew and was arrested by residents, who handed him over to police. In Harare, an assailant wanted to stab the crew. He was also arrested.”
Papu said the crews who were attacked were shaken up and would be out of work for some time.
“This is a big problem for us because we have a number of staff who have been attacked and are now out of the office.”
He said they have planned a march for next week that will bring attention to the attacks on medics.
Police spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Andre Traut said police were investigating a case of malicious damage to property regarding the incident in Paarl.
Cape Argus