An air ambulance crash is always sad. In an unfortunate incident, this past Sunday, E-med Rescue 24, a private air ambulance company crashed killing all 5 people aboard the aircraft. The air ambulance was heading towards Cape Town International Airport but crashed in the Tygerberg Nature Reserve which is outside Cape Town. The air ambulance service provider was based out of Namibia. The air ambulance was a Cessna 441, twin-engine aircraft.
The Unfortunate Victims of the Air Ambulance Crash
The victims were identified as:
- 80-year-old patient, Gabriel le Roux, who was a South African
- 49-year-old Charmaine Koortzen who was the daughter of the patient and also a South African
- 53-year-old Steven Naude who was the pilot of the air ambulance and a Namibian
- 23-year-old Amore Espag who was the co-pilot and a Namibian
- 24-year-old Alfred Ward who was the paramedic onboard and also a Namibian
The air ambulance had taken off from Oranjemund to transfer the patient to Cape Town for medical reasons.
Investigations into the Air Ambulance Crash
The Chief Executive of E-med Rescue 24 and the investigators from the Transport Department had visited the crash site. It was also revealed that there was a “breakthrough” in investigation and “some” results would be made public this week. The confirmation about the breakthrough came from Ericsson Nengola who is the acting deputy permanent secretary of the Department of Transport. He also heads the team that investigates aircraft accidents. Namibian and South African investigators are working together to find out the reasons behind the air ambulance crash.
There was a Technical Glitch at the Airport
According to ACSA (Airports Company of South Africa), all aircrafts that were scheduled to reach Cape Town had been put in a holding pattern when the fatal crash occurred. However, it was also reported that the “glitch” was not the reason behind the air ambulance crash. Authorities revealed that the problem at the airport pertained to “flight slot coordination.”
