Mr. Long, 48, died in the crash of his ambulance on West Road on Monday afternoon. The accident, in which he died performing his duty by transporting a patient, cast a pall over the emergency services community throughout the region and beyond. This was a service he had performed thousands of times over the past 25 years with ambulance services here and in Manchester, and he had been recognized and honored by his peers across the region and nationally.
This accident was tragic enough because of the service Mr. Long was providing at the time, but its impact seems far deeper because of who he was and the way he lived. To get a sense of how much respect, admiration and love Mr. Long commanded, especially among others involved in emergency services, one only had to glimpse the size of the crowd that gathered for an informal remembrance outside the hospital's ER entrance on Wednesday afternoon.
Those assembled included family members, friends, co-workers and others in the emergency services community, many of their vehicles parked in a row along the hospital drive. After several reminiscences, tributes and a song, a speaker remarked that at such a time, we do well to remember how much a single life can mean — to all who
Font Resize
| 