A man found in an open lot long before dawn on a very cold morning was examined by law enforcement and an ambulance was called. When the ambulance arrived, the deputy sheriff on scene told the crew not to touch the victim. The deputy had already declared the victim dead.
No one knew why the victim was lying out in the open on his belly. The deputy was going to treat it as a crime scene and didn’t want anyone to jeopardize the investigation by tromping around on the evidence.
A paramedic intern (trainee) riding with the ambulance crew noticed that the shadows on the victim’s back were moving – indicating that he was breathing. When the intern pointed that out to the deputy, he was rebuffed. Instead of packing up and leaving, the ambulance crew stuck around for a few minutes.
When the deputies finally decided to roll the victim over to take a look at his face, steam rolled up from underneath. Much to the deputy’s surprise (and dismay) the victim was alive – intoxicated and very, very cold.
The victim was taken to the hospital and treated for hypothermia.
Moral of the story: always do a thorough assessment before making any assumptions.
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