Firefighter jumps out of window to stop ambulance robbery

WILLOUGHBY HILLS, Ohio (WJW) — An Ohio firefighter was injured Sunday morning while trying to stop an attempted ambulance robbery at a hospital, the Willoughby Hills Fire Department reported.

An ambulance crew had stopped at Lake West University Hospital Medical Center around 10:30 a.m. to conduct a box exchange of medications. As they were leaving the hospital, they saw a man get into the parked ambulance and start to drive away.

Firefighter Brian Paladino, who is also a paramedic, dove through the open driver’s side window to overpower the man and wrestle the steering wheel from his hands, according to firefighters.

“As a result, the ambulance jumped a curb and crashed into the hospital’s helicopter landing pad, immobilizing the stolen ambulance,” the fire department said in a statement.

Hospital staff and other first responders descended on the scene and reportedly held the suspect in place until Willoughby police arrived and took him into custody.

Paladino suffered minor injuries to his ankle and arm during the incident, firefighters said.

Authorities said the suspect, who was not injured, was not a patient at the hospital.

“Someone (making) the very poor decision to steal a public safety vehicle puts themselves and everyone around them in danger,” Fire Chief Robert Gandee said in a statement. “Thankfully, the quick heroic actions of firefighter/paramedic Brian Paladino avoided a potentially more disastrous scenario. »