The Richmond Ambulance Authority says a staffing shortage is delaying some response times. The issue was brought to light after a pregnant woman said she waited an hour for an ambulance after a car wreck over the weekend.
City officials said fire and police responded to the scene in minutes. However Latonya Thornton said an ambulance took way too long to arrive.
The ambulance authority is responding to concerns about the wait time. “We’re hoping that that’s just an exception and not part of a pattern,” said Mark Tenia, with RAA.
Tenia blamed a shortage of ambulance workers. “It is concerning when you have staffing that is at that level,” he said Wednesday.
When the accident involving Thornton happened Saturday, Tenia said all eight staffed ambulances were out on other calls.