SUFFOLK, Va. — The Virginia Department of Transportation is highlighting the importance of National Traffic Incident Response Awareness week after an employee and contract wrecker operator saved an unresponsive motorist on the Monitor-Merrimac Memorial Bridge-Tunnel.
VDOT said the traveler was reportedly unresponsive and required immediate medical care on the MMMBT on October 18. Inside the bridge-tunnel facility, employees needed to render CPR and use an AED.
After the help of the VDOT employees, contract workers, and local emergency response crews, Riverside Health System confirmed the patient was OK after the incident.
VDOT said employees train for challenges and potentially dangerous conditions when responding to traffic incidents.
On average, bridge-tunnel staff members and safety service patrollers respond to medical emergencies 1 to 2 times per week, which vary from minor issues to serious medical conditions. Crews also need to respond to crashes where injuries vary from minor cuts to fractures, trauma, and paralysis, which may require immediate care in the roadway or facility.
The Federal Highway Administration is recognizing the week of November 10-16, 2019 as National Traffic Incident Response Awareness Week. The Traffic Incident Response Network said that the goal of this campaign is to educate responders, drivers, and passengers that everyone has a role to play in safe traffic incident management.
