Strange incident with a biker today.

Maybe he was drunk?

A few months ago I went out to throw the trash at around 9 PM. I noticed a couple of girls standing next to a young chap lying on the curb, under a tree. He was so close to the parked cars that it looks like he might have tripped and hit his head or perhaps he was assaulted, robbed of his phone and fell and hit his head. He was totally motionless and in an unnatural position (he was not lying there to take a nap on the curb as we often see nowadays).

One of the girls standing by told me she had already called the ambulance but nobody was coming. She also said the man was not breathing.

Nobody dared to touch him because if you move an injured person and cause more injuries (like to their collarbone etc.) you are even facing criminal charges. I had a open wound on my hand (from cooking) and no wristwatch, so I didn't touch him either nor I did get close to see if he was breathing. He looked completely still, though, and I couldn't see hi, breathing, either. One of the girls said she was confused because he had his pants undone (I hadn't noticed that detail myself - perhaps he tried to assault a woman and got knocked out?!).

A couple of other people stopped, as well. A man with a doctor bag quickly passed us (!!) hoping nobody would see his bag and disappeared - he didn't want to get involved, he just wanted to go home after a long day. People walking their dog just asked what had happened and continued their stroll barely taking note of an unsconscious man on the ground. Some clearly feared it was a trap, some didn't want to get involved, etc.

The guy didn't look badly dressed, he also had a backpack on him. Honestly, people here dress so poorly that homeless people look like ordinary people once they start walking among the crowd.

One lady recognized the guy as a homeless/drunkard that used to "live" a few blocks away. "Anyway, he is still a person", I said to myself and I walked to the police station two blocks away because it was over 15 minutes since I had arrived there and the ambulance was not in sight. One of the girls kept calling the emergency services and they said that her call had been taken and they'd send an ambulance, though.

I went to the police station hoping they could speed up the ambulance's arrival. I was basically tiptoeing to get the attention of a policeman who was talking s-l-o-w-l-y sayign goodbye to another person. I explained the situation and he said that if the ambulance had already been called, there wasn't anything else to do and to "rest assured" it would arrive.

When I came back I told the other bystanders that the police basically told me it is not their business. After another 10' some policemen came from the other side of the street. I recognized them as they patrol the area by foot and often take a rest at our car garage. Someone else might have alerted them when going on with their dog walk.

The young policemen, a man and a woman, started going around him. Now that the police was there, more people stopped by to watch and ask questions, no longer fearing it was a trap. The policewoman took off the man's backpack looking for an ID. She found 3 half empty bottles of liquor (whisky, gin, vodka). She looked for a pulse on his neck and muffled something to his colleague.

Miraculously, the ambulance came. It was a solid 30' after the initial call.

Note to self: never get injured while on public grounds in Argentina. You'll be dead and done before they come to get you.

More policemen arrived. Now it was someone higher in rank who laughed and told us that nothing had happened and the guy just had one too many.

The ambulance doctor had him sit and then stay. The guy basically woke up from a deep sleep all of a sudden. At that point, I went back to my apartment since nobody gave a piss by then. It was just another homeless who got drunk. The police must receive dozens of calls like this every day.

On Sunday night, I saw a similar situation in San Nicolás. A man was lying between parked cars with bloods on his face and a bruised arm and leg. He was shoeless and badly dressed, with broken trousers, unkept long hair etc. A woman had called the police. 6 policemen were there! Then an ambulance arrived. And it was business as usual.

Wow! I was so afraid this story was going to end badly. Mainly because of what happened in Retiro, Buenos Aires yesterday. <https://www.batimes.com.ar/new…ed-and-one-arrested.phtml>

As I understand it, the assailant originally presented as having been taken ill and those around him were concerned people trying to assist. Then he suddenly grabbed the gun and started shooting.

Quote from bebopalula

Wow! I was so afraid this story was going to end badly. Mainly because of what happened in Retiro, Buenos Aires yesterday. <https://www.batimes.com.ar/new…ed-and-one-arrested.phtml>

As I understand it, the assailant originally presented as having been taken ill and those around him were concerned people trying to assist. Then he suddenly grabbed the gun and started shooting.

She was just doing her job.

My heart goes out to her family.

What a monster!

Quote from UK Man

It happened when we were on our way to the countryside....the missus as usual was doing the driving. The road out of town crosses Ruta 5 the main road to Buenos Aires. Just as we were approaching the junction we passed a chap on a large Honda motor bike who suddenly started to travel very slowly. We slowed down and stopped as Ruta 5 is usually a very busy road with many large lorries. When the missus saw the road was clear we were just about to pull out when we heard a strange noise behind us. We looked back and there was the same rider and his bike on the ground. I jumped out and saw he was lying motionless under his Honda bike. Straight away I told the missus she'd better phone the emergency services as something wasnt quite right. I then went to see if I could help him in any way. I was scared to move him as he was motionless and not making any noises....must admit I thought he might be a goner. Thankfully, he started to come around just as a police girl appeared....turned out she was thumbing a lift on Ruta 5 and noticed what was going on. She told us she'd radioed it in then gave me a hand to lift the bike off the bloke.

Cut a long story short. More police and an ambulance arrived. Although still a bit groggy he was adamant he was okay with just a couple of arm grazes. The chaps in the ambulance checked him over and said he was okay to go...seems they can't force you to go to hospital. He admitted to the police it was his fault for not paying attention. They took a couple of pictures, did a check on the wife's and his documents then said we could go.The bike rider wasn't young maybe late 30's. He was a hell of a nice chap and seemed more worried about Cristina as he saw she'd got a hell of a fight thinking it was her fault. Anyway half an hour after it started we shook hands and parted friends.

Thing is, I just couldn't understand why he went unconscious for a full minute or two as he had a good helmet on and didn't hit anything as far as I know. Cristina reckons he might have felt unwell which may explain why he suddenly slowed down just before we overtook him...guess we'll never know.

I'm glad he didn't pass out at speed!

Anyway, I hope he went to a doctor later just to see what the problem was.