Ambulance robbed of drugs
The Ambulance Association says the robbery of an ambulance of drugs after being flagged down for a fake emergency may have been avoided if the vehicle had been double-crewed.
The single ambulance officer en route to a real callout early on Thursday morning in Hamilton was waved down by someone next to a man lying on the ground on Cameron Road.
As she went to help, two more men appeared and joined the group.
The officer was manoeuvred back into the ambulance and the men searched the vehicle for drugs.
Police say while the men scoured the ambulance, the officer alerted the St John operations room and then managed to escape.
Association chairperson Mark Quin says single-crewed ambulances are particularly vulnerable, and an extra person may have made the difference.
Mr Quin said the level of single-crewing is the same, if not worse, than a decade ago. He said officers' workloads are increasing and funding remains a problem.
The ambulance is being forensically examined.
