PORT DICKSON – A Bukit Pelanduk Health Clinic employee died and three others left unconscious after they allegedly inhaled carbon monoxide gas due to a leaking exhaust pipe of an ambulance that they were in this morning.
State Fire and Rescue Department assistant operations director Ahmad Mukhlis Mokhtar said rescuers rushed to the scene after receiving a call about the incident at about 9.50am.
“Initial investigations by the hazardous materials (Hazmat) unit found no leaks in the area of the clinic. Initial information found that the four victims had fainted in the ambulance.”
Hazmat unit head Mohammad Idris said the 29-year-old deceased had initially complained of chest pain before fainting at the clinic, while his three colleagues lifted him into the ambulance to be sent to Port Dickson Hospital, located 33km away.
“However, when the back door of the ambulance was opened upon arrival at the hospital, the other three male staff who were with the victim were also found unconscious, while the latter had died.”
It normally takes an ambulance about 20 to 30 minutes to get from the clinic to Port Dickson Hospital.
However, Mukhlis said the cause of death cannot yet be determined, pending an autopsy.
He said the driver and another staff sitting in front did not suffer any injury, adding that the other three victims are in stable condition.
Investigations are ongoing, but the ambulance’s exhaust system has been confirmed leaking.
Mukhlis said a similar incident also happened yesterday, involving a health worker who fainted while in the same ambulance, but added that his condition is stable. – Bernama, July 22, 2021
