EMT responding to emergency is killed in rollover ambulance crash, Indiana officials say
Two first responders were responding to an emergency call — with lights and sirens activated — when a driver entered an Indiana intersection and collided with the ambulance, authorities said.
The ambulance rolled over at about 3:20 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 5, according to a news release from the Starke County Sheriff’s Office.
Michael Wilcox Sr., the EMT who was driving the ambulance, was pronounced dead at the scene, authorities said. His passenger, paramedic Brandy Salita, was rushed to a hospital in serious condition.
Wilcox “was a well-loved father, husband, grandfather, friend, colleague, and so much more,” according to a GoFundMe raising funds for his family. “He will long be remembered for his kind heart and as the proud family man he was.”
In a Facebook post, his wife described him as her soulmate and best friend.
“All I keeping thinking is why ... is it always the good ones that leaves (too) soon,” Tiffany Loughry wrote.
North Judson Police Department Chief Kelly Fisher said he worked with Wilcox when he was a reserve officer.
“Mike was always very outgoing and wanted to help the world,” Fisher wrote on Facebook. “His son Andrew just became a Reserve Officer with NJPD. Andrew and Michael Jr are following their father’s footsteps in the first responder field of Fire,EMS and Police.”
His passenger, Salita, is a single mom of three, according to a GoFundMe. She’s also about to begin her last semester of nursing school.
“Brandy has suffered a bone-deep laceration to her head as well as three fractured cervical vertebrate, all of which have required surgeries from specialists to repair,” according to the fundraising page. “At this time, doctors estimate that she will be out of work for a minimum of three months, with an even longer road of healing extending beyond that.”
The preliminary investigation found that the Starke County ambulance was traveling east when it was struck by a vehicle traveling north into an intersection, authorities said. The driver of the other vehicle received minor injuries.
An investigation is ongoing.
Starke County is in northwest Indiana, about 90 miles southeast of Chicago.
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