Ambulances race to Robert Byrd's home

Politico ^

[Sub-Driver]

Ambulances race to Byrd's home By: Manu Raju September 22, 2009 10:16 AM EST

Ambulances and fire trucks were dispatched to the Northern Virginia home of Sen. Robert Byrd Tuesday morning.

A neighbor of the 91-year-old West Virginia Democrat said several ambulances were outside his residence in McLean, Va., and a Byrd spokesman said the senator suffered a fall in his home. An officer at the McLean Fire Department said that a unit was dispatched at 9:10 to the address where Byrd lives, but he declined to comment on the substance of the response.

Byrd – the longest-serving senator in the nation’s history – has been absent from the Senate for much of the year and has been in and out of the hospital battling various ailments.

“Byrd apparently stood up too fast this morning in his home and fell down,” said Jesse Jacobs, a spokesman for the senator. “To err on the side of caution his caregiver called an ambulance. He was taken to the hospital where he is currently being checked out. At this point in time there is no indication that he will be admitted.”

[Theodore R.]

It’s highly likely that Byrd’s successor in the Senate will be far to his LEFT! People in WV believe in government support.

[Theodore R.]

How said and it gives pause to the old adage “No good deed goes unpunished.”

[The Chief]

My fire department does not do medical calls, however many do.

Generally the fire department is quicker to get to the scene with their paramedics and/or EMT’s in my area as each village has a fire department but not their own ambulances, therefore they will assess and/or stabilize the patient while awaiting the ambulance to arrive.

BTW the other reasons mentioned on this thread are also valid reasons for the FD and ambulance to be dispatched to the same call...

[RipSawyer]

“My dad had a similar problem the last 10 years or so of his life. It’s old age, nothing more.”
////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

Then tell me why I had the same problem as a TEENAGER!! When I was around fourteen to fifteen I had to be very careful getting to my feet if I had been sitting very long. Once I actually passed out and fell flat in the floor. The problem went away by the time I finished high school. I don’t think the problem had much to do with unclear arteries at that age, I was a farm boy eating home grown vegetables every day and walking many miles in an average day, I doubt there were any arteries on the Earth any clearer than mine. I had no kind of chronic illness or weakness either, once I stood long enough for my head to clear I could go and chop wood or whatever I needed to do.

[Verginius Rufus]

They don't have a county named for him--maybe they are waiting until he dies. They could name two for him, "Robert" and "Byrd," side by side, like Virginia did with "Patrick" and "Henry" counties.

There is precedent for renaming counties--Cass County, Missouri, was originally named Van Buren County, and Clay County, Minnesota, was originally Breckenridge County.

[pillut48]

Post of the day!!!

[pillut48]

I honestly believe he’s been suffering from dementia for the past few years as well, from some of his rambling, weeping episodes in Congress!

[WVNan]

Frankly, I’m not sure what the replacement procedure is, but if it’s an appointment by the governor, I pray that the governor appoints himself. He’s a conservative democrat and pro-life.

[mad_as_he$$]

Around here every medical call gets a firetruck, that usually arrives first. One of the fire persons is always a paramedic and ALL engines have a basic med kit including defib and some meds. Ambulances can take 20 minutes to arrive in outlying areas and fire houses are usually 5-7 minutes away. BTW the ambulances are operated by a separate entity from the fire service.

[pillut48]

HAARP: Helping an Ancient Racist Person (off the planet)

[pillut48]

My sister has something like this, has to do with low blood pressure--most people, if they get active, their blood pressure goes UP, but those with this symptom have a sudden drop in their BP and it can result in fainting.

It's why Greg the yellow Wiggle had to quit being a Wiggle. :*(

Greg Page (Wikipedia)
Illness and retirement

On 30 November 2006, The Wiggles announced that Greg Page would retire from The Wiggles due to poor health.[2]

Page had experienced health difficulties since December 2005, when he underwent a double hernia operation and withdrew from his group's U.S. tour after suffering repeated fainting spells, slurred speech, fatigue, and trembling.[3][4] Although Page was missing for virtually all of the late 2006 U.S. tour, audiences were informed of Page's absence at concerts moments before the curtain went up.[5] At first, Page was told that he had seven years to live,[4], but he was diagnosed with a non-life-threatening and difficult to diagnose chronic illness called orthostatic intolerance, which causes symptoms such as fatigue and loss of balance. Specialists believed that Page had mild episodes of the illness going back twelve years, but symptoms worsened after his hernias. It was decided that Page would retire from performing with The Wiggles to better manage his health.[2] In the months following the announcement of Page's retirement, he received an "overwhelming outpouring of public support". He reported that it took his parents six months to respond to the "mountains of letters, emails and sympathy notes"[4].

Page was succeeded by Sam Moran as a full member of the group.[2]

[Excuse_My_Bellicosity]

How many ambulances does it take to transport him? Let me guess, his ego was too big to ride in the same vehicle.

[Palladin]

So, what’s the latest on old Sheets?

One less vote for Obamacare??

[RipSawyer]

Thanks but I don’t see much there to account for a very strong, very active teenage boy having a problem of being dizzy immediately upon standing and then having the problem go away by early adulthood. I have three brothers and I think they all had it at about the same age. I know my older brother had it and sometimes would have to grab something to hold on to. My mother said she had the problem as a young girl and it went away once she reached adulthood.
I don’t think my father ever had this problem or maybe he just wouldn’t admit it if he had.

[Pikachu_Dad]

Cause we are better at ‘first responding’ than the paramedics. :)

[2CAVTrooper]

“Did he injure himself putting on his Grand Kleagle outfit?”

Nah, he hurt himself trying to burn a cross.

[SendShaqtoIraq]

usually fire trucks are sent first because they usually have a paramedic crew and there are more firestations than ambulance bases, so help gets there faster

[2CAVTrooper]

“They always send fire trucks along with ambulances even if there’s no report of fire. Seems like a waste of resources.”

It depends on the area. If the fire department doesn’t have dedicated paramedic squads, an engine or truck company would be dispatched until the contract ambulance service arrives.

Here in Montgomery, they have paramedic squads, but there isn’t enough to cover the entire city, so some engine companies pull double duty.

[AliVeritas]

At least he ‘carried’ the constitution.

Prayers up for the guy, he’ll need them.

[the OlLine Rebel]

Some people just have low blood-pressure issues. It may be something you all struggled with while going through puberty until full maturity.