Within a minute of Saturday night’s devastating crash between a pickup truck and a hayride, Ridgeland Fire Chief Brad Bonds was on the scene at the intersection of Tarboro Road and Malphrus Road.
“I was just coming down the road and happened to be in the area,” said Bonds. “There were multiple people on the ground. It was a chaotic scene because there were so many different people everywhere, and we had to get them through triage.”
Six people were taken to area hospitals, three of them to Savannah Memorial according to Bonds. Of those three, two were taken by helicopter and one by ambulance. Up to 10 other people were treated for injuries at the scene but not transported, Bonds said.
Two of the three victims taken to Savannah Memorial are now in stable condition, while a third remains critical according to reports heard by Bonds.
Bonds was unsure of which hospital or hospitals the other three victims were taken to.
In a statement to The Island Packet early Sunday morning, Ridgeland Mayor Joey Malphrus thanked first responders and Bonds specifically for their fast response to the accident. Bonds also stressed the importance of being on scene as quickly as possible in circumstances like Saturday night’s accident.
“When you get there early you are able to evaluate what needs to happen quickly,” said Bonds. “We called for helicopters within the first five minutes. It is very important to get there in these bigger instances as quickly as possible to see what you have and what you need coming to you so you can get people treated.”
Michael Olinger: 843-706-8107, @mikejolinger
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