NEW ORLEANS — An emergency medical technician (EMT) was driving an ambulance to bring a patient to a hospital just after midnight when he was killed in a crash on I-10, according to Louisiana State Police. There was dense fog with almost no visibility, authorities with several agencies confirm.
John Mitchell Crow was 36 years old and worked with Acadian Ambulance since July 2019. It was a job he loved, according to friends.
"He loved his work. He was always helping other people," Seth Sutton who coaches the softball team Crow played with in New Orleans said. "If someone got hurt on the field, he was the first one to run over."
Crow lived in Pascagoula but would drive to New Orleans for practice and games with the softball team he joined several years ago.
"We're the only gay softball league in the state of Louisiana," Sutton said. "He loved it and would work an all-nighter and drive over to come play softball."
Crow died just after midnight when his ambulance crashed into the back of an 18-wheeler, according to Acadian Ambulance. He was on I-10 in Slidell.
“It is a tremendous tragedy when we lose a crew member in the performance of their duties or otherwise. Our team is dedicated to protecting and saving lives. This hits us all very hard," said Acadian Ambulance President Justin Back.
"Kind of like the safest slowest driver you'd ever imagine. That’s why it’s even more shocking for us. We called him the grandma of the team," Sutton said.
According to Louisiana State Police, there were a total of 16 vehicles involved in four crashes along I-10 in Slidell overnight.
"The fog was just almost zero visibility,” Trooper William Huggins with Louisiana State Police, Troop L said.
Trooper Huggins suggests pulling over if you can't see due to fog.
"If you're driving on the interstate and fog becomes too dense where you can't see in front of you, do the best you can to try and safely get off the interstate and pull into a parking lot and just wait it out. If you feel like you can’t get off the interstate, the only advice I can give you is try to get onto that shoulder as far as you can," Trooper Huggins said.
Trooper Huggins said only when you pull off the road, put your hazard lights on.
"You don't want to be driving down the road with your hazard lights on," he said.
According to Acadian, a paramedic and patient were in the ambulance with Crow and were hurt with minor injuries, but are expected to survive.