Long wait for help after boy falls off back of truck

POLOKWANE – A nine-year-old boy lay injured in the street for almost two hours after falling from the back of a truck, as his mother frantically tried to summon medical assistance on Thursday.

Petrus Seteki was helping his mother’s employer by sweeping the back of a truck when he slipped and fell head first. He hit his head and landed on his back.

His mother, Edna, said she immediately rushed to his side and tried to find out whether he had broken any bones.

“He complained of pain and his face started swelling. I have a bit of first aid training and I knew that with possible back and head injuries, it was best not to move him, because this could cause further damage,” Edna told Review.

“I called the provincial ambulance service immediately and was told that there were no ambulances available to assist at that stage. Almost two hours passed with various people including business owners in the vicinity and even bystanders making calls to try to have an ambulance dispatched,” she said.

Residents who contacted the provincial ambulance service told Review they were told that the ambulance drivers were on strike.

“Eventually I asked for help on the Pietersburg sê jou sê Face-book page. The members gave me the contact details of a private ambulance company and following my call to them, there was an ambulance on the scene within 15 minutes. The provincial emergency medical services never arrived,” Edna said.

She said on arrival by private ambulance at the Pietersburg Provincial Hospital, there were four ambulances parked on the premises with a driver in each ambulance.

Edna said when she spoke to some of the hospital personnel, she was told that it had been a quiet day and that there had only been one other patient brought in earlier in the day.

Sanet Malan, a resident who was also at the hospital at the time of Petrus’ admission, confirmed that personnel said the ambulances had a quiet day.

“This means that these ambulance drivers sat at the hospital and did not even make an effort to get to my son,” Edna said.

Edna said Petrus was sent home with a clean bill of health later that day.

“My concern is what will happen if someone dies because there was no ambulance available? Emergency medical service personnel must understand that in a medical emergency, speedy assistance is very important. This could have been a matter of life and death,” Edna said.

She thanked the owners and personnel of the private ambulance service, the people on Face-book who helped her and every person who tried to contact the provincial ambulance service on her behalf.

She further said she intended to seek legal advice regarding this matter, and if it was feasible, she intended to claim compensation for her son.

Health spokesperson Macks Lesufi said he was not aware of any strike in the health sector, and he would investigate the matter. He said complaints such as this should be reported to the department. At the time of going to print he was not able to give any further comment on the matter as he was in a meeting.