Utah’s first responders plead with drivers to pay attention

SALT LAKE CITY — First responders with an important message to drivers: Pay attention to the roads.

Unified Fire Authority firefighter Bridger Bentzinger specializes in hazmat. Still, in October, he was in an ambulance when his station was dispatched to a 12-year-old boy who was hit while crossing the street at a crosswalk.

“As we arrived, it was initially chaotic,” Bentzinger said. “Kid laying on the ground, that initially draws your attention.”

He said calls where children are involved are always the hardest. The toll can’t be underestimated for all involved.

“It’s not ever something you think would happen until it does,” Bentzinger said. “And in that case, it doesn’t only affect the people that were involved. It affects the people who have to respond.”

Plans for crosswalk traffic light expedited after 12-year-old hit while crossing

He said, while on a scene, it’s all business, but that changes after things are harder to process.

“That stuff kind of kicks in after the incident, once things kind of settle down, and you realize what just happened,” Bentzinger said.

That 12-year-old hit last month was taken to the hospital in critical condition.