A Georgia teenager collapsed during volleyball practice and died of cardiac arrest when no ambulance arrived, authorities said.
Amanda Sylvester, 15, a member of the Dream Chasers volleyball club, collapsed Thursday while warming up at the Tracy Wyatt Recreation Complex in the Atlanta suburb of College Park. Atlanta News First reported.
Paramedics arrived within minutes and examined the boy, but the called ambulance never arrived.
“Within approximately eight minutes, College Park Fire Rescue was on scene,” Fulton County spokesman Bill Crane said. He told 11Alive. “By that time, the young woman was conscious, assessed, and evaluated. All of her vitals were normal. She was making eye contact, her pupils were not dilated, and she was unable to speak. I did.”
When an ambulance didn't arrive for 40 minutes, Sylvester's mother took him to Hughes Spalding Children's Hospital, where he went into heart failure but was resuscitated and died.
Dream Chasers Volleyball Club coach Katherine Murray called the lack of an ambulance “unacceptable” and slammed Grady Memorial Hospital.
“We have a precious life in our hands, and we have a responsibility for that precious life,” she said. “We need better networks and systems to protect these children.”
City officials said they were investigating why an ambulance did not arrive to “provide additional trauma treatment and transportation.”
“We are all devastated by this tragic loss of life at such a young age,” said College Park City Administrator Dr. Emmanuel Adiran. “Our Department of Recreation and Cultural Affairs staff, College Park Fire Rescue, Volleyball Club coaches, parents and staff followed all protocols related to the injury and medical distress.”
Grady EMS defended its response, saying the initial call was classified as low severity.
“College Park Fire Department responded to the scene and was ready to provide medical care and transportation if necessary. Following updates on the patient's condition, the call was reclassified and Grady EMS was immediately dispatched. “The ambulance service said:
“However, while our units were en route, the College Park Fire Department determined that additional EMS support was no longer needed as the patient was transported to the hospital in a private vehicle.”
As of 2022, the average response time from Grady for important calls was 22 to 29 minutes, according to a study conducted by Atlanta News First.
Research shows that the average response time for non-urgent calls is 46 to 89 minutes.
City authorities are investigating the incident.
