EMS to replace regulators on portable oxygen cylinders
HONOLULU — While a final investigative report into last month’s fatal ambulance fire is still months away, Honolulu Emergency Medical Services is already acting on preliminary findings by ordering new regulators for all portable oxygen tanks used by its paramedics in the field, EMS director Jim Ireland told the Honolulu City Council at a special public safety meeting earlier this week.
Ireland said the purchase was made out of an abundance of caution after a preliminary report on the incident indicated that the explosion and subsequent fire that killed 91-year-old patient Fred Kaneshiro and critically injured 36-year-old paramedic Jeff Wilkinson likely started with a portable oxygen regulator.
