A fund has been set up for donations to support the two Joachim-Plattin Ambulance District employees who were seriously injured July 12 while on the job, Administrator Curtis Stueve said.
Paramedic Erik Bedwell, 27, of Imperial and Capt. Greg Maguire, 61, of Festus suffered serious spinal injuries when they were in an ambulance transporting a patient to an area hospital and a 60-year-old Arnold woman allegedly crashed an SUV into the ambulance on I-55 just north of Hwy. Z near Pevely.
After the wreck, the woman was arrested for suspicion of driving while intoxicated and three counts of assault, the Missouri State Highway Patrol reported.
When the accident occurred, Bedwell was not using a safety device because he was in the back of the ambulance tending to a patient being transported for medical care. Maguire, who was wearing a seat belt, was driving the ambulance, which, after being struck by the SUV, ran off the road, struck a cable median barrier and overturned.
“Erik was in surgery Sunday to fix his severed spinal cord,” Stueve said today (July 15). “He is paralyzed from the waist down. They did repair the injuries during the surgery. We’ve been told he could walk again in the next year to year-and-a-half or he may never walk again.
“Greg had spinal injuries and a concussion. He underwent surgery Monday. He was up walking today. He will go to rehab. His prognosis is much better.”
Stueve said he did not have an update on the condition for the patient in the ambulance, a 48-year-old Herculaneum man, who suffered a fractured pelvis in the accident.
The Arnold woman suffered moderate injuries, and Stueve did not have an update on her condition either.
He said the fund to benefit Bedwell and Maguire was set up at First State Community Bank. Donations may be made to the JPAD Paramedics Recovery Fund through the bank or may be sent to JPAD House 6, 1235 Truman Blvd., Crystal City, 63019.
Donations also may be made through PayPal, Stueve said.
He said numerous first responders and other community members reached out to JPAD after hearing about the accident.
“We can’t say enough about the outpouring of support we’ve received from first response agencies and the community,” he said.