TRENTON, N.J. — N.J. firefighters had to wait for police officers after the son of a patient they were treating became combative.
“We’ll get some grief and aggravation from people, but not like this,” Engine 6 Capt. Mike Strycharz told NJ.com. “This was a strange case.”
Firefighters arrived at the scene getting a call about a woman who was reportedly suffering from a heart attack Wednesday night.
When crews arrived, the woman’s son was at the front door yelling and cursing at firefighters to treat his mother.
As firefighters treated the woman, the son became much more confrontational.
“We really thought he was going to strike any of us at any given time,” Strycharz said.
Crews later found out that the son had punched the mother’s friend in the face, which may have caused the mother to hyperventilate and mimic heart-attack symptoms.
NJ.com reports that several ambulances were sent to the scene, but firefighters wanted police on the scene to deal with the son, however, officers were in the middle of a shift change and were not available right away.
“The whole time he’s pushing me out the door (but) he was saying, ‘Treat my mother, treat my mother,’” Strycharz said.
When officers arrived, the man was promptly arrested.
It is unclear how the mother is doing and what charges have been sent against the man.