Teen volleyball player dies after ambulance fails to show

A Georgia teen who collapsed at volleyball practice died from cardiac arrest after an ambulance failed to show up, officials said.

Dream Chasers volleyball club member Amanda Sylvester, 15, collapsed while warming up Thursday at the Tracey Wyatt Recreation Complex in the Atlanta suburb of College Park, Atlanta News First reported.

Within minutes, EMTs arrived and evaluated the teen, but an ambulance that was called never came.

“Within about eight minutes, College Park Fire Rescue EMTS were on site,” Bill Crane, a spokesman for Fulton County, told 11Alive. “The young lady, by then, was conscious, evaluated, and assessed. Her vitals were all normal; she was making eye contact, her pupils weren’t dilated, and she was conversant.”

When the ambulance didn’t show up for 40 minutes, Sylvester’s mother drove her to Hughes Spalding Children’s Hospital, where she went into cardiac failure and was revived once before she died.

Dream Chasers Volleyball Club coach Catherine Murray slammed Grady Memorial Hospital, stating that the ambulance not showing up was “unacceptable.”

“We have precious lives in our hands, and we’re responsible for these precious lives,” she said. “We have to have a better network and system to protect these kids.”

City officials said they are looking into why an ambulance did not arrive to “provide additional trauma care and transport.”

“We are all devastated by this tragic loss of life at such a young age,” said Dr. Emmanuel Adediran, College Park’s city manager. “Our Recreation and Cultural Affairs Department staff, College Park Fire Rescue as well as the volleyball club coaches, parents and staff followed all protocols related to an injury or health care distress.”

Grady EMS defended its response, saying the initial call was categorized as low severity.

“A College Park Fire unit responded to the scene and was equipped to provide medical care and transport if necessary. Following an update on the patient’s condition, the call was reclassified, and a Grady EMS unit was promptly dispatched,” the ambulance service said.

“However, as our unit was en route, College Park Fire determined that additional EMS support was no longer needed due to the patient being transported to the hospital via personal vehicle.”

An investigation done by Atlanta News First found that in 2022, the average response time from Grady for critical calls was between 22 and 29 minutes.

The average response time for less urgent calls was between 46 and 89 minutes, the investigation found.

City officials are investigating the incident.