Tasmanian man dies after 78-minute wait for ambulance
A man in his 60s waited about 78 minutes for an ambulance. The Zeehan station was unstaffed. He died when it arrived.
A man in his 60s called triple zero from the Zeehan area on Saturday. The man had chest pain and trouble breathing.
The case was priority one, meaning an ambulance should arrive very fast. The Zeehan ambulance station was unstaffed that day due to a gap in the work schedule.
Nearby crews in Strahan and Queenstown were responding to other calls. An ambulance from Burnie, about 140 kilometres away, was sent.
It arrived about 78 minutes later. But the man was dead when it arrived.
Health union secretary Robbie Moore said a crewed Zeehan ambulance would have arrived much sooner. This death comes less than two weeks after a similar incident in Hobart.
A family had to drive a man to hospital there because no ambulance was available.
- 140 kilometres
- Distance Burnie to Zeehan
- 78 minutes
- Wait time
- Priority one
- Priority classification
- 10 minutes
- Recommended response time
Why it mattersThese deaths show a pattern of ambulance shortages in Tasmania. They raise urgent questions about rural emergency care.
AustraliaRural Tasmanians are facing serious delays in emergency care due to ambulance staffing shortages, putting lives at risk.
✓ Claims checked against the source. checked 2 h ago
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