Subscribe | UPI Odd Newsletter Subscribe EUREKA, Calif., March 1 (UPI) -- A 20-year-old California man stole an ambulance from paramedics sent out to help him after he crashed into some trees, police allege. The California Highway Patrol alleges after Derick Gates of Hoopa drove his car over a state Route 299 embankment, he refused treatment from responding paramedics and then made off with their emergency vehicle, the Eureka (Calif.) Times-Standard reported Friday. Advertisement The ambulance was then pursued by a Humboldt County Sheriff's Office deputy and a state patrol officer. The chase, lasted an entire hour despite both of the ambulance's right tires deflating during the pursuit, the highway patrol said. The officers eventually took Gates into custody after the ambulance finally broke down. The Times-Standard said Gates is now facing charges of stealing an emergency vehicle, driving under the influence of a controlled substance and evading a police officer.
