Kilo Zero

I was returning to base after treating and leaving a patient at home. It was dark, windy and rainy and all I wanted to do was be at home in bed. The screen bleeped in to life and woke me from my daydream. I acknowledged the job and saw it was an entrapment. A perfect night for standing around I thought. My radio stirred and I answered it with my callsign; "Please can you just go and have a look" asked the voice on the radio. I resisted the urge to say no and switched on the blue lights. I saw blue lights up ahead and slowed down, as I approached the scene I saw that the fire service had just arrived. I got out and donned my Hi Vis and Helmet, grabbed some kit and took the scene in as I approached. An engine block to my left, debris strewn for 50 metres or so. A strange eerie silence as I approached one car, it looked like there was one male being attended to by 2 firemen. I walked past to the other car, one male sat at the side of the road and a female with a firefighter. I updated control, I needed 3 vehicles fast. Kilo Zero. The code for no vehicles available. That was pretty high up on the list of things I didn't want to hear. "I don't care where you get them from, but I need people here now, 1 x P1 and 2 x P2, possibly a Kilo 1" I returned to the P1, the firemen had inserted an OP airway and had begun ventilating the patient. He was encased by the car. I couldn't see below his chest, but I could see it rising and falling as I took over the ventilations. I listened to his chest, it sounded surprisingly clear. The firemen begun to dismantle the car and I noticed a child seat in the rear of the car. I shouted asking if anyone had missed anything and the fireman replied that they hadn't found anyone else yet. My radio went off, informing me that a vehicle was approx 10 minutes away and the Hazardous Area Response Team had been mobilised, thankfully they had a Doctor riding with them but they were over 20 miles away. I looked down on the ground, oil, fluid, debris and a soft teddy. For a moment I too stopped breathing. this wasn't just a patient, he was a Dad, the wedding band on his finger said he was a husband. I looked again at the scene, there were 6 of us around the car, all working seperately but together with one aim. the Police had arrived and were watching, grim faced and the reality dawned. It took us 45 minutes to release the patient, we worked on him, we gave him the best fighting chance. The 3 crews arrived, as did the Doctor who performed bi-lateral chest drains on him at the side of the road. Another statistic, another waste, another failure. Merry Christmas. Ho. Ho. Ho.