The Escape

It was about 0600 and I had about an hour of duty left and things had quieted down. Suddenly I heard a horn honking and honking outside the ER/A&D Entrance. I finally went out and as I walked around the bunker at the entrance and I saw someone in one of our Ambulances accross the road where the Ambulances were parked. I walked accross the road and came up to the driver's door. Inside was a young man who began to yell orders to me, I'm General so and so and where is my driver at. He was going on and on. I then noticed he had on hospital pajamas and I saw he had a wristband on. I started to play the game calling him General and telling him we needed to go in and find the driver. Luckily he agreed.

Just as he got out of the Ambulance a chopper could be heard right overhead and it was coming in to land on the helipad with causalties not very far from where we were. He yelled my helicopter, my helicopter and began to run to the helipad. I took off after him. My immediate thought was that he was going to get killed by the chopper or it's blades. I knew and saw the damage a chopper's blades can do and I also knew the chopper pilot would not know what was going on - on the ground and might think we were just running out to get the wounded off.  Luckily I did catch him and was able to keep him away from the chopper. I somehow convinced him to come into the A&D/ER. Once inside I matched up his wristband with a number in the log book. I called the psych ward. I said "This is Mahoney in A&D, did you lose someone?" A relieved voice said yes, where is he and in a flash they were there to pick him up. After this was all over it really hit me as to what had happened and just what a terrible outcome this could have been.

After all these years I can still remember seeing this very young man sitting in the Ambulance honking that horn. I often wonder how he is doing and how his life turned out and pray for him as I do the others. I suppose my feelings and worrying about these young men and women may seem strange to most, but they have left an permanent image in my mind and impact in my being and I will never forget them.