Ambulance, Mercedes collide

Four people were hurt when a Newport Beach paramedic truck taking a patient to the hospital collided with a car in a busy intersection at rush-hour Tuesday, officials said.

Police said the driver of the car, a Newport Beach woman in a Mercedes, did not yield to the ambulance, which was rushing through the intersection with lights and sirens.

The two paramedics in the truck, one driving and one in back with the patient, were taken to Hoag Hospital and released after being treated for complaints of pain, Newport Beach Police Sgt. Bill Hartford said. Officials said they could not release the condition of the patient, who was being transported at the time of the accident. The driver of the Mercedes was also hospitalized.

The accident is still being investigated, but officials said paramedics were following procedure when they drove through the intersection.

“They were operating within policy, based on the witness statements,” Newport Beach Fire Division Chief Paul Matheis said.

Witnesses interviewed at the scene said the siren and lights were going when the medic van entered the intersection, Matheis said.

Emergency vehicles are permitted to use sirens and lights — also called “Code 3” — in emergency situations, when directed by a supervisor, Hartford said.

The medics were driving south on MacArthur Boulevard at 6 p.m. when they approached San Joaquin Hills Road. According to witnesses, the truck stopped, attempted to clear the intersection by sounding the air horn and then collided with the white Mercedes, officials said.

The paramedics radioed for help, and the patient was immediately transferred into another ambulance. The paramedics, their patient and the driver of the Mercedes were taken to Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian.

The accident backed up traffic on MacArthur Boulevard on Tuesday evening. As investigators worked the scene, the ambulance with a smashed front end remained near the curb in the northbound lanes of MacArthur.

It is required by law that motorists yield to emergency vehicles by driving to the right side of the road and stopping, Hartford said. The driver of the Mercedes was not cited, but it’s possible traffic investigators could decide to cite her after the investigation is complete.

Newport Beach police are investigating the accident as a traffic accident. When law enforcement vehicles are involved in accidents, the California Highway Patrol typically investigates, Hartford said.