| Donated medic unit to the Guatemalan Fire Department |
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 The task was for Everett Firefighter/Paramedic Peter Knudson to deliver a donated medic unit to the Guatemalan Fire Department to be used as a heavy rescue rig. Modern U.S. medic units use to much fuel to be used as Aid cars. The calls for a rescue rig are fewer therefore they can afford the fuel. Most of the calls that their department goes on are trauma related, car wrecks, gunshots and machete attacks. The next closest volume of calls are to deliver babies, then come asthma and anaphylaxis. We started the drive in Pierce county. The caravan consisted of the Medic unit filled with donated gear for heavy rescue and bunker gear and an SUV filled with one fellows personal to to live and work in Guatemala for two years. He has been donating his time for the last eleven years and is going to Lake Attitlan to set up a new fire station and establish a boat ambulance for the region. During the drive down we paid for the fuel and everything else to get there. This for me was my Christmas present, to help out. We drove to Brownsville Texas in forty eight hours. There was a time issue because the upcoming Christmas holiday was going to close the Mexico/Guatemalan border for several days for commercial traffic. If the rig stayed in impound all of the donated equipment would have been missing. The Medic unit had to cross Mexico as a trans migrante, which is a vehicle that was purchased in the U.S. to be sold in another country outside of Mexico. It took a day and a half to get our papers and another day and a half to cross the border. The two fellows driving the Medic unit had to spend the night in line in that the trans migrante crossing closes down at night. As a trans migrante you have to follow a prescribed route or it is assumed you are trying to sell the vehicle in Mexico without paying an import duty and your vehicle will be confiscated. As a trans migrante you are prey to banditos, federales and city police all looking to shake you down. so they link up in caravans of multiple vehicles and stay together throughout the trip. they stop driving around 10:00 pm. to avoid being a more vulnerable victim. If one stops they all stop. We joined these trans migrantes sleeping in gas station parking lots. We only were stopped once to pay a bribe.  At the Guatemalan border we hired a negotiator to get the rig through. The decision was economic because if the rig stayed in impound for any length of time several thousands of dollars of donated equipment would be missing. The money that was needed to get through the border was whittled down to $500. When we got to our destination the people could not be more kind or gracious. I was shanghaied into staying with a firefighters family for the entire eight day stay in their town. The FF. would say that it was getting dark and he had so much to do why don't you just stay with us. So we all were treated to free places to stay and all of our meals. Of course we tried to help out with chores whatever we could do to repay their kindness because payment would have been an insult.
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| Last Updated on Saturday, 07 March 2009 06:48 |
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