By Gary Newsome
Publisher, Baja Racing News LIVE!
From the AMEX Report to the Governors of Baja California & Baja Sur
American Medical Emergency Xpedition has worked at the SCORE International desert off-road races since 1999. Several years ago, when Roger Norman bought the Race sanction, deaths and injuries at the events, increased sharply.
Press reports about nonexistent emergency medical care, failed civil protection and degraded safety communications are documented within numerous case studies and patient care failures.
The changes in policy and procedures in how emergency medical care was delivered produced very negative outcomes. The one case study known around the world, is the Kurt Caselli case.
Caselli was just one of numerous deaths resulting from changes in policy and procedures of the new ownership in the race sanction. Civil protection was completely ignored. Hundreds of near misses, tens of documented cases of dead bystanders and numerous violations of international law finally forced the governments of Baja California and Baja Sur, Mexico, to address the negligent race sanction operated out of San Diego, California, USA.
Safety communications, have been damaged since the 'Norman era' began. In point of fact, SCORE-International actually intentionally degraded several communications platforms for the Race Events Held in Mexico.
The 'Weatherman Net', a radio race communications network was abandoned. After many years of service, the net was relegated to obscurity by Roger Norman. The tracking and safety service provided through the previous owner, Sal Fish, was willfully underfunded and scattered to the winds, to be replaced by a Satellite service, as stated in previous contracts, not designed nor suggested for use in fast moving, desert off-road race events, held in Mexico.
The new owner, Roger Norman himself, expressed his self interest to reduce costs at the ultimate price of human life. Norman money to the Kurt Caselli Foundation is largely a payoff to keep Kurts family mouths, shut.
Many of the long term exposures to risk are as a result of the change in medical care to the local red cross, via Normans failed tracking and communications services.
The most prevalent emergency medical misadventures by SCORE International in Mexico during Normans ownership are as follows.
*Delay in Performance. Many racers have died, simply for lack of care or delayed care.
*Error in Diagnosis. Many racers have been forever handicapped by diagnosis issues in Mexico.
*Improper Performance. Many racers have been subject to failed emergency transfers and third world medical quality issues.
The risk of injury to racers is great in these outdoor competitions. These misadventures have resulted in injury to multiple body parts. Symptoms involving back injuries, chest pain, the abdomen and pelvis have been impossible to diagnose in the field, by the local red cross. Displacement of intervertebral discs are common in these race injuries. Numerous fractures of tibia, fibula and other body features are common.
There is no alcohol or drug use screening done on any of the participants, at any time. There is no screening of racers health conditions, prior to race events held by SCORE. Numerous racer conditions not screened have included coronary atherosclerosis. Documented cases of racers deaths attributed to heart failure are publicly well known.
AMEX will release its 'SCORE Civil Protection Failures' report on Tuesday, November 8.
BajaRacingNews.com continues to follow these reports from AMEX (American Medical Emergency Xpedition).
