PORT ELIZABETH - EMS CREW ROBBED AT GUNPOINT BY 6 MEN WHILE ATTENDING TO A PATIENT

The Eastern Cape Health Department has condemned an attack on one of its EMS ambulance crews in the Nelson Mandela Bay Metro in the early hours of Thursday morning.

Health Department spokesperson Siyanda Manana says in a second attack in four days, another EMS ambulance crew was held at knife and gunpoint at Kwazakhele Site & Service at around 4am.

Manana says the two crew members were robbed of phones and wallets by six armed men while they were attending to a diabetic patient .

Manana says it was an opportunistic criminal attack by at least six armed men.

"Definitely it is very disappointing to have two attacks on our medical services staff in one week. It is something we never contemplated would happen. We condemn it and we call upon the community to work with us in ensuring we uproot all these elements in our community, because what they are doing is to deny our people access to care"

Another crew was attacked in the same area on Sunday morning and Manana says they're seriously reconsidering sending their crews into certain areas.

"We are going to look at a situation, in certain times when it is dark, we are not going to allow our ambulances and expose them to such dangers. We might then be forced to have police escorts or patients must be taken to their nearest police station" he added.

VIA - algoafm.co.za