An emergency crew in China which illegitimately used its ambulance siren and flashing lights to clear a way on a popular tourist highway in Tibet has triggered a public backlash.
The incident happened on the 117km long road that connects the rest of China to the remote county of Medog in the mountainous autonomous region in the western part of the country.
Medog used to be known as China’s last roadless county because of its difficult geological conditions before the highway opened in 2013.
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The road has been popular among tourists nationwide for the beautiful scenery along the route.
On May 12, a driving tour enthusiast from Shandong province in eastern China posted a video online criticising an ambulance crew for using their siren to clear their way on the highway.
The man, who goes by the username @dayangdelutu, said the highway only allowed cars with even plate numbers to drive in the direction of Medog county on the day in question because of difficult road conditions.
Not long after they hit the highway they saw an ambulance, with its lights flashing and siren on, coming from behind.
They drove into the side of the road to let it through.
They were then shocked to find the ambulance parked at a famous tourist spot along the highway. Its passengers got out of the vehicle to take photos.
They continued their journey, and before long the ambulance once again approached them from behind, trying to clear the way with its siren on.
They could not give way this time due to the traffic conditions, but the loud ambulance siren kept blaring.
Eventually, they pulled the ambulance over to remonstrate.
It turned out it was using a number plate registered in Sanya, in southern China’s Hainan province.
A man got out of the ambulance and told the poster and his friends off, before saying that only the police could stop him from using the siren.
He also encouraged them to report him to the police, which they did.
Officers arrived and disabled the siren. They also fined the driver 200 yuan (US$28).
The poster said he did not plan to post the video online, but the person did not admit to his mistake, and even filed a complaint against the police officers.
On May 13, Sanya Health Commission announced that it had suspended the company that operates the vehicle and demanded it make the rules clear to all its emergency crews.
The Hainan-based company, Orient Air Medical Association, is a private, for-profit emergency medical service provider.
The vehicle involved had been sent by the company to Tibet on a long-term period of service.
China bans individuals or non-medical agencies from buying or running ambulances.
Responding to previous case in 2023, lawyer Fu Jian at Henan Zejin Law Firm said private ambulances are illegal, and face legal consequences if they endanger the health of patients.
In that case, it was reported that a private ambulance driver deliberately drove slowly in a bid to extort more money out of the family of the patient he was carrying.
Some medical workers told the mainland media outlet Tide News that many patients had to use private ambulances, especially in cases that required a transfer to another hospital in another city or province, because legitimate ambulances did not normally provide such a service.
“They must be punished for abusing the priority that an ambulance is entitled to,” one online observer said.
The driver of a legitimate ambulance then added: “We even turn down the siren if we get stuck in the traffic.”
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