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Ore. infant dies of cardiac arrest; road conditions delayed ambulance, firefighters say

Since the ambulance was impeded by snow-covered streets, Portland firefighters transported the child to a hospital

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The part of Portland where Interstate 5 and I-84 meet is seen from a drone on Thursday morning.

Photo/Dave Killen/Tribune News Service

By Beth Slovic
oregonlive.com

PORTLAND, Ore. — An infant died in Portland Thursday, when the city experienced poor road conditions.

Portland firefighters responded to a medical call in outer Northeast Portland around 6 a.m. Thursday of a child in cardiac arrest. When firefighters and one paramedic arrived, they learned an ambulance with two additional paramedics would be delayed due to distance and snow-covered roads, said Portland Fire & Rescue spokesperson Rick Graves.

Instead of waiting, firefighters took the child in their rig to Adventist Medical Center, where the child was pronounced dead, Graves said.

An ambulance crew may have allowed emergency responders to perform additional interventions, Graves said. “The weather had an effect on the availability of crews,” Graves said on Thursday. “Today the drive wasn’t fast.”

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