How do you move hundreds of patients out of the way of forest fires?
With a crew of dedicated staff, said Trevor White, operations manager for the Abbotsford-based company Hospital Transfers.
香蕉视频直播淚 am so proud of them,香蕉视频直播� he said of his employees, who spent days moving 184 patients around the province as fires threatened numerous communities, including Merritt, Vernon and Kelowna. And this all happened during the same time frame that B.C.香蕉视频直播檚 main highways were closed for various emergencies.
White was finally catching his breath Thursday, when he spoke to The News about the harrowing few days that have just passed.
香蕉视频直播淭his all started (last) Friday morning,香蕉视频直播� he said. 香蕉视频直播淚 got a phone call from the Ministry of Health that there was an evacuation alert for Lillooet Hospital.香蕉视频直播�
The Ministry of Health is his company香蕉视频直播檚 only client, and his team of about 230 staff normally transfer about 400 to 500 patients a day within the Fraser Valley and Lower Mainland. The patients香蕉视频直播� conditions range in needs, from being able to walk and travel in a bus, to needing wheelchairs or stretchers.
White said in 30 years of transporting patients, he香蕉视频直播檚 never seen the scale of operation needed to move people around. This all involved constant contact with the Ministry of Health, including calls with Minister of Health Adrian Dix. It was a gargantuan, critical effort to keep those most vulnerable safe.
Each hospital they evacuated, or decamped, had different transportation needs. Nineteen of the Lillooet patients were sent to North Vancouver, and one was sent to Penticton. These were critical patients on stretchers, White said.
But the 香蕉视频直播渇un香蕉视频直播� really started on Monday morning, Aug. 16, when they were called in to decamp hospitals in Vernon and Merritt and Kelowna. They had to get help from BC Transit and Westjet, along with 17 buses. There were patients that were driven to Quesnel, 100 Mile and Williams Lake, but more had to get to the Lower Mainland.
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Seats were removed from planes to accommodate wheelchairs. Patients were triaged based on whether they were able to walk.
All of this was under a bright red sky that felt like being on Mars, he underlined.
And then, they got the call that the planes couldn香蕉视频直播檛 fly. They already had the patients loaded and ready to go. But then, the highways started closing, and they had to find places not just for the patients who were mid-transfer, but also all of the dozens of drivers.
Most of them ended up at the Grand Villa in Kelowna, where they were able to catch a quick nap before collecting all the patients again, in an ever-changing fire situation.
But it was at that hotel that White was moved to tears. When he pulled up to the front entrance at 3 a.m. on Tuesday, he saw a parking lot full of their yellow and red transport vehicles, and he was bowled over with pride.
香蕉视频直播淚t was just a mass of yellow ambulances,香蕉视频直播� he said. 香蕉视频直播淚t literally brought a tear to my eye.香蕉视频直播�
He said not one employee complained about the long days and nights, the uncertain conditions, or the constantly changing logistics they were dealing with.
香蕉视频直播淭hey could have said no,香蕉视频直播� he said, but instead rose to the challenge and got the job done with a smile. When it was all said and done, one of his employees back in Abbotsford even ran out to a drive-thru and brought back 50 hamburgers and fries to treat the drivers to a quick snack.
He wanted to share the story with the community so they understand the work that goes on behind the scenes, and so people know there are plans in place for emergencies.
香蕉视频直播淲e picked up one lady and it was her 100th birthday,香蕉视频直播� he added.
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jessica.peters@abbynews.com
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