Observations at an accident scene

We were driving North from La Paz a few days ago and were the first to come upon a 2-car, head-on collision on Hwy #1 about 35k outside of town. Midday, sunny, and on a fairly straight stretch of rolling road but very, very narrow with no shoulders and drops-offs to drainage culverts on each side. Five people involved, 4 with some degree of injuries.

The accident blocked the road in both directions and as traffic began to stack up, many of the other bystanders helped by comforting the trapped family, helping us stabilize the victims that weren't trapped, and notifying emergency crews and maintaining contact with them. The scene was different than what I've experienced in the U.S. - sort of calm and quiet and no one freaking out.

One of the families was trapped in their vehicle, including the most seriously injured victim. As other vehicles arrived, we did what we could to stabilize the injured and make them comfortable as possible while we waited for the rescue crews.

A man from Tijuana stayed on the phone with the emergency dispatcher who put the Cruz Roja ambulance crew in contact with him. The Cruz Roja EMT's called him directly and asked for a description of the scene so they could determine the proper amount of resources to send - very good co-ordination. When they asked him about the severity of injuries, he relayed what Oladulce and I had found. I was impressed that they must have been formulating a plan as they drove to the scene.

I recently retired as a fire paramedic/engineer, and was curious how the local EMS personnel would handle the scene. I was extremely impressed with both the Cruz Roja and Rescate Bomberos. The Bomberos were as skilled in vehicle extrication as any crew I've worked with in the U.S. One of the cars was crushed and and the driver was pinned between the door and steering wheel, their car had also been pushed up against the embankment blocking the passenger's exit. Considering the damage, the Rescate crew had the car disassembled and the victims out in a short amount of time. They were equipped with basic extraction equipment, and lacked some of the specialized tools, but did a great job.

The Cruz Roja EMT's were very professional and performed thorough assessments and appeared skilled in their treatment of victims on the scene.

It took 45-50 min. for Cruz Roja to arrive and about an hour for the Rescate. The whole event was about 2 hours which was a poignant reminder of how long you might have to wait if you're in an accident way outside of a major town.

The Federal Caminos arrived last, just as the ambulances were leaving.
Two hours later and no sign of a tow truck. One of the wrecked cars was blocking both lanes so they directed a big rig to push it over to the side so they could direct traffic around it and got the highway moving again.

I was impressed (and reassured) to see the skill level and expertise of the Cruz Roja and the Rescate Bomberos- ojalá none of us ever need them.

Wooo, an amiga is here & she said that US firefighters & EMT's from CA have & continue to come down periodically & give training sessions to the local Cruz Rojo/Bomberos.

Those accident victims & the rescue crews were REALLY LUCKY that it was you two who were first responders for a multitude of reasons!

To me, response time is the one of the scariest things about driving remote stretches of Baja.

Thank you for sharing a positive experience & being where your expertise was much needed!

Who ever implied that retirement in Baja might be dull?