03/May/2020 – MVC with Air Evac – “C” Shift

Incident # 20-02927 – A 70 yr. old Indiana woman was seriously injured in a single vehicle, high speed MVC on Interstate 95 near the 61 mile marker northbound. The woman was driving a 1999 Jeep Cherokee northbound when the car veered into the median. The driver overcorrected and lost control causing the small SUV to flip over several times on the highway, coming to rest on it’s roof in the travel lanes. The vehicle received heavy damage and was leaking a large amount of gasoline. The woman, who was wearing a seatbelt and the sole occupant of the vehicle, received multiple traumatic injuries, including a near amputation of the left arm. A passing Doctor, Paramedic and Tybee Island Ga Police Officer stopped to assist. They pulled the woman from the car and applied a tourniquet to her arm to stop the severe bleeding, saving her life. Fire-Rescue units arrived a short time later and administered additional care and requested the CARE Flight helicopter, who responded to the scene. The patient was packaged and turned over to the Flight Crew without incident, then flown to the Trauma Center at MUSC in Charleston. The northbound lanes of the Interstate in the area of the accident were blocked for about 20 minutes. After the helicopter departed one lane was reopened. Traffic backed up five miles. The car was removed from the highway and the large amount of debris was cleared before the highway could be completely reopened an hour later. The SC Highway Patrol is investigating the accident.

Engine 26, Medic 26, Medic 27, Battalion 1 and Car 112 responded. Battalion Chief Chris Jones served as Incident Commander.