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American Morning
Frist Aids Crash Victims On Florida Highway; Interview With Paramedic
Aired January 02, 2003 - 07:04 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Incoming Senate majority leader and doctor, Bill Frist, came to the rescue of six people who were hurt when their SUV rolled over on a Florida highway. A 10-year-old girl died at the scene, but officials say that Frist came in and provided invaluable help, aiding victims along with emergency personnel.
Susan Candiotti checks in now with more from Fort Lauderdale.
Good morning -- Susan.
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Leon.
I'm standing in front of the air rescue helicopter that arrived at the scene to help out at that scene of that awful accident.
Senator Bill Frist was in the right place at the right time, shortly after a tragic rollover accident on Florida's Alligator Alley, and he was able to lend a hand, as you indicated, to the six victims.
Now, as you also indicated, a 10-year-girl, who was inside that car, did die at the scene. Five other people were injured, some critically. Half of them were ejected from the car, which was an Isuzu SUV.
Now, Senator Frist is the incoming Senate majority leader. As you know, he is also a thoracic surgeon. And before the paramedics even arrived at the scene, he was able to get on the telephone with them, give them an idea of what kinds of injuries were involved. And in fact, when the paramedics arrived on the scene, he was able to pitch in and help them as they attended to the victims. All of those victims are from the Tampa, Florida area.
Senator Bill Frist was on his way to Fort Lauderdale for a family vacation, and he didn't identify himself to those at the scene.
He also did not speak to anyone on camera, but did offer the following statement through a spokesman. He said: "As a doctor, my first instincts are to help, and I was privileged to offer my assistance today at the scene of this horrible accident." He added: "My heart goes out to this family, which must face the start of the New Year with this terrible tragedy. My thoughts and prayers are with them."
And as you know, this is not the first time that Senator Frist used his expertise to help out. He helped out at a Capitol Hill shooting in 1998, for example. Back to you -- Leon.
HARRIS: All right, thanks, Susan -- Susan Candiotti reporting live this morning.
And it wasn't just that time on Capitol Hill. This, in fact, is at least the fourth time that Frist has come in and responded to a medical emergency since he's become a U.S. senator.
Now, those at the scene yesterday say that his aid was absolutely crucial.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CAPT. JEFFREY ANDREWS, BROWARD CO. FIRE & RESCUE: Without his help, we probably wouldn't have been able to get the patient intubated. I mean, he knew the procedures that we were doing, he was very familiar with the procedures that we were doing, and he knew what we needed to have done in order to help get that airway in position.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: Captain Ken Kronheim was on the scene with Frist working side by side with the senator, and he joins us now from Fort Lauderdale this morning.
Good morning, and happy New Year to you, Captain.
CAPT. KEN KRONHEIM, BROWARD CO. FIRE & RESCUE: Hi. Good morning. Thank you very much.
HARRIS: Now, when you arrived at the scene, was the senator already there and at work?
KRONHEIM: Yes, actually Dr. Frist was giving our dispatch center updates regarding the patients, the amount of patients and their conditions. The accident scene is in a very remote area that takes about 30-40 minutes for rescue crews to get to.
HARRIS: Now, we have heard as well that a 10-year-old girl did die in this accident. Was Senator Frist, or Dr. Frist I should say here, was he the one who confirmed that with you?
KRONHEIM: He did report while we were on our way out that there was at least one fatality, and he gave us an idea that there were numerous critical patients, which was helpful, because we then mobilized additional resources and a second helicopter.
HARRIS: Can you tell us exactly what it was you saw the senator do, or what is it you knew that he did? How critical was his assistance?
KRONHEIM: Probably the most important thing Dr. Frist did was triage the scene for us, which basically means sorting out the patients according to priority. We had so many patients on scene. Eventually, decisions have to be made on who gets treated first, who gets transported first, and he was instrumental in helping us sort out the critical patients.
He actually pulled me away from one patient to render care to another patient, who he correctly identified as being more critical. And then, he actually helped me draw up muscle relaxants and sedatives to facilitate advanced airway procedures.
HARRIS: Yes, and that's a big help, considering the fact that he's a thoracic surgeon. That's part of his expertise.
When did you find out and when did you realize that he was a senator?
KRONHEIM: Basically, when he left. He did look familiar, and it was known that he was a thoracic surgeon. And when I heard his name mentioned, we took a list of all of the bystanders, and there were numerous bystanders on scene. There were off-duty doctors, nurses and paramedics that were all helping. We basically put two and two together and realized that that was Senator Frist...
HARRIS: And then you...
KRONHEIM: ... on the scene helping us, but he -- yes.
HARRIS: You just watched him ride off into the sunset at that point then, huh?
KRONHEIM: Absolutely. He sneaked out before he could get any thanks or glory -- a true hero.
HARRIS: That's incredible. Captain Ken Kronheim, thank you very much. We sure do appreciate your telling us this story this morning, and good work at least stepping in and helping those that you did step in and help out late yesterday in that Alligator Alley.
KRONHEIM: Thank you very much.
HARRIS: Take care and happy New Year to you.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
With Paramedic>
Aired January 2, 2003 - 07:04 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Incoming Senate majority leader and doctor, Bill Frist, came to the rescue of six people who were hurt when their SUV rolled over on a Florida highway. A 10-year-old girl died at the scene, but officials say that Frist came in and provided invaluable help, aiding victims along with emergency personnel.
Susan Candiotti checks in now with more from Fort Lauderdale.
Good morning -- Susan.
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Leon.
I'm standing in front of the air rescue helicopter that arrived at the scene to help out at that scene of that awful accident.
Senator Bill Frist was in the right place at the right time, shortly after a tragic rollover accident on Florida's Alligator Alley, and he was able to lend a hand, as you indicated, to the six victims.
Now, as you also indicated, a 10-year-girl, who was inside that car, did die at the scene. Five other people were injured, some critically. Half of them were ejected from the car, which was an Isuzu SUV.
Now, Senator Frist is the incoming Senate majority leader. As you know, he is also a thoracic surgeon. And before the paramedics even arrived at the scene, he was able to get on the telephone with them, give them an idea of what kinds of injuries were involved. And in fact, when the paramedics arrived on the scene, he was able to pitch in and help them as they attended to the victims. All of those victims are from the Tampa, Florida area.
Senator Bill Frist was on his way to Fort Lauderdale for a family vacation, and he didn't identify himself to those at the scene.
He also did not speak to anyone on camera, but did offer the following statement through a spokesman. He said: "As a doctor, my first instincts are to help, and I was privileged to offer my assistance today at the scene of this horrible accident." He added: "My heart goes out to this family, which must face the start of the New Year with this terrible tragedy. My thoughts and prayers are with them."
And as you know, this is not the first time that Senator Frist used his expertise to help out. He helped out at a Capitol Hill shooting in 1998, for example. Back to you -- Leon.
HARRIS: All right, thanks, Susan -- Susan Candiotti reporting live this morning.
And it wasn't just that time on Capitol Hill. This, in fact, is at least the fourth time that Frist has come in and responded to a medical emergency since he's become a U.S. senator.
Now, those at the scene yesterday say that his aid was absolutely crucial.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CAPT. JEFFREY ANDREWS, BROWARD CO. FIRE & RESCUE: Without his help, we probably wouldn't have been able to get the patient intubated. I mean, he knew the procedures that we were doing, he was very familiar with the procedures that we were doing, and he knew what we needed to have done in order to help get that airway in position.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: Captain Ken Kronheim was on the scene with Frist working side by side with the senator, and he joins us now from Fort Lauderdale this morning.
Good morning, and happy New Year to you, Captain.
CAPT. KEN KRONHEIM, BROWARD CO. FIRE & RESCUE: Hi. Good morning. Thank you very much.
HARRIS: Now, when you arrived at the scene, was the senator already there and at work?
KRONHEIM: Yes, actually Dr. Frist was giving our dispatch center updates regarding the patients, the amount of patients and their conditions. The accident scene is in a very remote area that takes about 30-40 minutes for rescue crews to get to.
HARRIS: Now, we have heard as well that a 10-year-old girl did die in this accident. Was Senator Frist, or Dr. Frist I should say here, was he the one who confirmed that with you?
KRONHEIM: He did report while we were on our way out that there was at least one fatality, and he gave us an idea that there were numerous critical patients, which was helpful, because we then mobilized additional resources and a second helicopter.
HARRIS: Can you tell us exactly what it was you saw the senator do, or what is it you knew that he did? How critical was his assistance?
KRONHEIM: Probably the most important thing Dr. Frist did was triage the scene for us, which basically means sorting out the patients according to priority. We had so many patients on scene. Eventually, decisions have to be made on who gets treated first, who gets transported first, and he was instrumental in helping us sort out the critical patients.
He actually pulled me away from one patient to render care to another patient, who he correctly identified as being more critical. And then, he actually helped me draw up muscle relaxants and sedatives to facilitate advanced airway procedures.
HARRIS: Yes, and that's a big help, considering the fact that he's a thoracic surgeon. That's part of his expertise.
When did you find out and when did you realize that he was a senator?
KRONHEIM: Basically, when he left. He did look familiar, and it was known that he was a thoracic surgeon. And when I heard his name mentioned, we took a list of all of the bystanders, and there were numerous bystanders on scene. There were off-duty doctors, nurses and paramedics that were all helping. We basically put two and two together and realized that that was Senator Frist...
HARRIS: And then you...
KRONHEIM: ... on the scene helping us, but he -- yes.
HARRIS: You just watched him ride off into the sunset at that point then, huh?
KRONHEIM: Absolutely. He sneaked out before he could get any thanks or glory -- a true hero.
HARRIS: That's incredible. Captain Ken Kronheim, thank you very much. We sure do appreciate your telling us this story this morning, and good work at least stepping in and helping those that you did step in and help out late yesterday in that Alligator Alley.
KRONHEIM: Thank you very much.
HARRIS: Take care and happy New Year to you.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
With Paramedic>
