Contributed article
SAFFORD — According to Dr. Bart Carter, chief medical officer at Mount Graham Regional Medical Center, the hospital received six patients in total from the accident on U.S. Highway 191, near mile post 143, on Thursday, Feb. 15.
MGRMC staff activated the mass casualty protocols and responded successfully to the emergency.
One patient sustained critical injuries, was stabilized at MGRMC, and then was transferred by Air Evac helicopter to a Tucson area hospital for further care.
On social media, the victim’s family identified him as Jared Gilbert. The family posted to social media that Gilbert died Feb. 19 as a result of his injuries.
Two patients who were critically injured were taken immediately into the MGRMC operating room, where their injuries were successfully repaired. Those patients were then admitted for intensive care and remain at MGRMC. The status of both patients has been ungraded to stable and improving.
The remaining patients were treated for non-life-threatening injuries and released from the Emergency Room. Further updates will be forthcoming as needed.
In a prepared statement, hospital officials said, “As a Level IV Trauma Center, we are consistently working towards providing the best possible care when caring for severe injury or trauma. Carter, who is also a general surgeon, acts as our Trauma Medical Director. He and Dr. Jorden Marble, our second general surgeon, respond to trauma-critical patients. Having a trauma team available 24/7 makes us different from other rural IV centers, because our surgery department is very involved in trauma. As we have for 50 years now, we are committed to providing the best possible emergency care for our neighbors, our friends, and our families.”
Editor’s note: This story was updated at 4:56 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 20, 2024, with information about the death of one of the victims.
