SLOVENIA'S 5 CORE VALUES

He was told that a man was trapped under a tree in a hard-to-reach location, which was fortunately close to Matthew's home. The man immediately sat down in his pickup and headed there.

If it had been an incident where he needed firefighting equipment, he would have had to stop at the fire house first, but since he did not need it to deal with this case, he immediately went to the injured person.

"I was one of the first to arrive. A local man was standing near the scene and told me how to get to the victim. Then the fire brigade arrived and we set off to rescue the victim on a very muddy dirt road."

The Lord was conscious, but in severe pain. He had already been rescued from under the tree by passing locals who were by his side. They assessed his condition and found that he had a broken leg and severe pain in his spine and neck, which indicated the possibility of serious injury, and extra care was needed when moving the injured man.

"I waited for the paramedics and directed them. The driver judged that it was not appropriate to drive the ambulance over such terrain because it might get stuck, so I drove them to the scene in my own car. by pickup."

The problem was caused by the gentleman's condition, which meant he had to be transported as safely, comfortably and calmly as possible to the ambulance. The route led through a pasture.

"No vehicle was suitable except my Ford Ranger. We strapped the gentleman firmly to the rescue stretcher and placed him in the rear cargo area of the vehicle, which we had previously lined with fire jackets to keep him soft. Five other firefighters and paramedics were seated with him. This was followed by an extremely slow and careful drive to the ambulance."

The gentleman was successfully transported to hospital and treated accordingly. He has made a full recovery and his treatment is complete. After about three years, he met Matthew again and could not thank him enough for the transport and care he received during the accident.

"When I got that call, I had no idea that my car would be so instrumental in saving a casualty. I am very proud and happy that everything turned out the way it did. Firefighters and paramedics had to come together and find many solutions to the problems that kept arising. Well, just that the gentleman is safe and well."

                                                                                                                                     Nuša Želko, 9. 3. 2025