A “SHOW off” ambulance driver has admitted causing the death of a paramedic who was killed in a horror crash with a cement lorry.
Alice Clark, 21, was just two months into her job when she died while responding to an emergency call.
SWNSAlice Clark was killed while responding to an emergency call[/caption]
The ambulance she was travelling in crashed into a cement lorry
SWNSEdward Riding has admitted causing her death[/caption]
Edward Riding was driving the ambulance when he took a wrong turn and hit a kerb at over 80mph.
The 44-year-old then collided with the corner of a parked car before crossing a lay-by and slamming into the back of a tanker.
He later told a passing driver who stopped to help: “I f***ed up”.
Riding admitted causing Alice’s death by dangerous driver but avoided a jail term – despite colleagues describing his driving as “very fast” and accusing him of “showing off”.
He was instead handed a prison sentence of nine months, suspended for 18 months.
Maidstone Crown Court heard Riding was responding to an emergency call in Sevenoaks, Kent, in January 2022 when they were “diverted”.
After hitting the lorry, the ambulance became entangled – leaving him and Alice trapped in the front.
Riding later told police he could hear the junior paramedic “panting for breath”.
He added: “I repeatedly asked Alice if she was still with me. She said ‘Yes’ once, but her breathing remained laboured.”
Alice was eventually rescued from the ambulance but had suffered life-threatening injuries and couldn’t be saved.
I felt unsafe with him, I was scared of Zeke’s driving, and I felt that I had no option but to raise this with a supervisor.
Paramedic colleague
A cause of death was given as lower limb and pelvic fractures with retroperitoneal haemorrhage from a vehicular crash.
Another student paramedic, Megan Kuhn, was in the back of the vehicle and suffered a severe concussion, a bleed on the brain and bruising down her left side.
The driver of the Volvo tanker was left with a split to his left eyebrow, a swollen eye, cuts and bruises and a torn ligament in his neck.
Riding was airlifted to hospital with rib fractures, a dislocated hip and several leg fractures.
His colleagues told the court how they felt Riding was an unsafe driver.
Amy Berry said she thought he might have been “showing off” in front of Megan.
She added: “I remember Zeke actually saying to me during the course of one of those drives that he wanted to make Megan turn as green as her uniform because she was a student paramedic.
“He was making a joke of it, laughing about it.”
Ms Berry said she raised her concerns with a supervisor but, due to work pressure, it was never followed up.
Alice was so excited to qualify as a paramedic and looked forward to every shift. She was a beautiful, kind, fun loving daughter, sister and granddaughter.
Alice’s heartbroken family
Another colleague, Calan Weller, said Riding was “very fast”.
He added: “I felt unsafe with him, I was scared of Zeke’s driving, and I felt that I had no option but to raise this with a supervisor.
“I tried to approach Zeke and explain to him how I felt about his driving in that it wasn’t safe and that it was too fast.
“Unfortunately, his attitude was just ‘meh’ and he shrugged off any complaint that I had.”
As well as a suspended prison sentence, Riding was banned from driving for 15 months and ordered to pay £826 in court costs.
Alice had joined South East Coast Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust in November 2021.
Her devastated parents previously said: “Alice was so excited to qualify as a paramedic and looked forward to every shift. She was a beautiful, kind, fun loving daughter, sister and granddaughter.
“She loved to travel and anyone who met her loved her. She will be missed more than words can say by family and friends.”
SWNSAlice had only recently qualified as a paramedic[/caption]