by West, J. D.
“What did they do?” he asked. “Call the fucking cops?”
“I’m not a cop sir.” I responded. “I’m a security officer.”
“What the hell do you want?” he yelled. “What you think I’m supposed to be intimidated by your punk ass?”
“I’m just making sure everything is okay.”
“Hell no! I’m not fucking okay.”
“Calm down sir.”
“I’ve been here for almost four hours so you calm down.” Things were about to escalate into a fight when Dr. Sanchez got his attention. She touched his elbow and held his hand. He quit looking at me and listened to her.
“We are sorry for the delay sir. Please let us take care of you.”
“I just want my arm fixed up.”
“Then please sit down so we can take care of you.” She got him to sit back down in the chair and the nurse started to take the bloody towel off his arm. I called over the radio that the situation was okay but I was going to stand by while the man was in triage. Dr. Okonkwo started the man’s exam while Dr. Sanchez and Dr. Black went to check on Dr. Sanchez’s patient in room #6. When Dr. Okonkwo asked him how he hurt his arm he replied that he was in a fight. He was leaving a downtown bar after watching the baseball game. His team won so he celebrated by knocking back a couple of beers. He stopped to take a pee between two parked cars. He heard a noise and looked over to see a crazy looking dude with sunken eyes on top of another well groomed man. The crazy man pulled himself to his feet using a car bumper. The large man stated that the man had a suit on but his white dress shirt had dark stains on it. He also had strange looking eyes. When he walked it looked like he had been drinking. His movements were increasingly irregular. The large man asked him if he was okay but he just moaned. The man in the suit fell forward and grabbed the large man by the waist. The large man held the man in the suit up by his shoulders to keep him from falling down. The man in the suit was able to bite him before he could react. The intoxicated man took a chunk out of his arm. The large man punched him in the face but he kept on coming. He had never punched someone and not put him down. The large man reached into the back of his pick-up and grabbed a crowbar. It took a couple of whacks to take the man in the suit down. He covered his arm with a towel and drove himself here. Arvayo had come by to check on me by the time he finished his story. He said he would stand by with the large man so I could finish my patrol. I walked past room #6 and the room was full of nurses. Dr. Sanchez and Dr. Black were in the doorway talking to patient’s fiancée. She had spent the last couple of hours pacing back and forth in his room only stopping to whip the sweat off his face with a handkerchief. The patient’s prognosis had gotten worst and he could no longer speak. His nurse took a quick reading from his forehead with a temporal thermometer. The man had a temperature of 106.1 degrees. I got out of the way and continued my patrol. Hernandez called Lt. Arvayo over the radio and told him an agent from Homeland Security was here to see him.
His name was Cullen Rose. He was the special agent in charge for the state of Arizona. His department was committed to keeping terrorists and dangerous criminals from entering the country. The news reports from the last couple of days caught their attention. The trouble was centered on the US border with Mexico. Agent Rose was here to interview the injured detainees found in the desert. He needed to know if the stories were true. He needed to speak to them before they got deported back home. Arvayo told him we would let him know when the helicopter touched down. I was at the ER registration window checking to see what room the large man was in. I looked through the bulletproof glass into the ER waiting room. Everyone’s eyes were focused on one of the three TVs mounted on the walls. I opened the security door to see what was going on. That room was always crowded and noisy but now it was silent. I wondered what could have everyone’s attention. When I looked at the broadcast I could see it was a breaking news story. The anchor cleared his throat and started to talk:
“We are interrupting this program for a crisis update. The violence that we reported several hours ago is no longer taking place just at the border. All across the city of Tucson we are getting reports of violent attacks leading to injury and death. Throughout the day eyewitness accounts and information has been constantly updated. Most of the attacks have been committed by people infected with a strange new virus. The attacks are centered near the cities largest hospital. The first responding officers radioed in that screams could be heard coming from inside. What ever made the sounds was coming straight towards them. A woman pushed open the hospital doors and ran towards them out of breath. She bumped into one officer and rushed past him without saying a word. Her face was pale and her hands were bloody. When he grabbed her by the shoulder and asked what was wrong she stood there glaring at him with a blank look. That’s when they found out what had happened. Strangers were hurting each other. Friends were attacking friends. Families were killing their own kin.
Within minutes more officers showed up along with TV news helicopters and trucks. More than two dozen law enforcement units including the police , sheriffs department, and S.W.A.T. responded to the call. Many of them were in uniform but some of them were in plain cloths , body armor, and riot gear. Some of the officers used their cars to barricade the streets. Their initial perimeter spanned for a block around the building. A few minutes later a scared group of bystanders scrambled out the hospital and took off down the sidewalk. Running from an unknown enemy the crowd spilled out into the street and blocked off traffic. That’s when dozens of people clad in hospital scrubs and staff uniforms began to stream out the building. They wounded some stragglers and critical injured others. The commanding officer and chief negotiator used a megaphone to give orders to the approaching mob. He shouted for them to stop and when they didn't his men opened fire with pepper spray balls and rubber bullets. The gas failed to slow them down and the rubber bullets bounced off causing little injury.
The first line of officers banged on their riot shields with long batons before stepping forward in a show of force. Several other officers were bitten while trying to handcuff the assailants. When the mob still refused to disperse three canine officers let their dogs loose on the crowd only to see them killed. They insane crowd bit and clawed the animals to death. Sensing that something was wrong two S.W.A.T. snipers began to pick the offenders off one by one but there were too many for them to be effective. All the units took evasive action and started firing their weapons. They tried to back away but soon their uniforms were splashed with their own blood. When the Police could not stop the violence martial Law was declared. Officials have called for a full scale city wide evacuation. Despite the warning only a relatively small amount of people have left. National Guard rescue helicopters have made hundreds of trips in and out of town. The pilots plucked stranded residents off the roofs of buildings and parking lots. The police and sheriff’s department are engaged in combat all over the city. Heavy street by street fighting has cost them a lot of good men. The defenders are shooting and killing their former friends and family. They slaughtered hundreds of enraged people but more kept coming.
Law enforcement tried to make a stand but their efforts produced little success. After a few close calls they realized all hope was lost. There are so many crazy people that the defenders have been forced to retreat. Some of the officers were so scared they threw down their weapons and ran for their lives. With so many desertions the fate of the city is sealed. Small arms and shotgun fire could be herd for blocks in every direction. The police escaped to safety as the rioters moved largely unabated. The officers were unprepared to deal with their superior numbers. Chaos has run rampant. Criminals took the opportunity to take over the rest of the city. Robbery, rape, and murder are being committed by crazed thugs. The streets of Tucson are littered with the remains of the innocent. Looters brok
e into shops, convenience stores, and banks. This type of anarchy was only supposed to happen in third world countries but this is America. The politicians had a duty and moral obligation to keep people safe but thousands of displaced people have been left waiting for a rescue that isn’t coming. The residents of the poorer neighborhoods in town could not afford to pay for rides. Most of the people living there tried to barricade their windows and doors with wood scraps and broken furniture. Survival became a matter of the haves and have-nots.
Some of the men refused to leave and formed a makeshift neighborhood watch to protect their families. A lot of them took up arms to defend each other. They raided pawn shops and sporting goods stores for weapons but living in fear without a since of hope created infighting and mistrust. Any one that looked sick or like they didn’t belong was shot on site. The citizens kept on shooting until the strangers stop moving. They took out the infected as well as the living. Somehow they felt the killings were justified. The vigilantes managed to rescue a lot of their friends and neighbors from the ravaged city. A lot of them have headed North in a mass exodus using interstate highway # 10. Anyone left alive crammed onto the crowded roads and joined the long line of cars and hikers. They yelled at the passing cars trying to get a ride. Hikers carried backpacks, babies, and supplies. Some of them pushed shopping carts and wheeled trash cans filled with their belongings.
Traffic was backed up on the interstate from south to north as people fled the violence. The scared people sitting in bumper to bumper traffic were traumatized from losing so many friends. The state police drove up and down the shoulder of the highway with their lights on and sirens blasting. The highway was clogged with broken down or abandoned cars. Most of them had been loaded to maximum capacity. In order to prevent further harm to the public all valley police agencies and highway patrol are asking everyone to stay off the street. You should try to lock yourself inside your home or business if possible. Valley hospitals around Phoenix have also started to receive a lot of similar assault victims and cases. The vicious and unprovoked attacks are taking place were large groups of people congregate! The governor has been alerted but has dismissed initial reports while waiting on more concrete evidence.”
We did not know it yet but many of the people in the waiting room were here for treatment of bite wounds or the sickness they caused. I looked around the room during the broadcast to see fear and disbelief on everyone’s face. Most of us were confused about what was really happening. The news report created more questions than answers.
“This is not happening.” said a tall woman.
“It has to be some kind of joke.” barked one man.
“Did he say what I thought he said.” an elderly woman asked.
“Jesus help us all.” a mother said while hugging her kids.
“Is this for real?” asked a teenage girl.
******
Things were even worst in Tucson and teetering on chaos. The airport was the first thing to be closed down. Luckily several planes still got off the ground. The crowded terminals were filled with people screaming into cellphones with their eyes fixed on TV screens. The public announcement system barked out the latest cancellations as panicked family members and strangers looked at each other confused. All incoming planes were diverted and flights scheduled to take off were canceled. Passengers and staff had already been confined to the airport for several hours. When they found out there were no more flights the stranded passengers smashed check in counters and assaulted airline staff members. Others were so angry they trashed computer equipment and broke glass windows. It became a full blown riot. Dozens of airline employees and ground crews left their post and ran. Desperation prompted the remaining passengers to flock to smaller airports. Other residents had the same ideal. They tried to bribe private plane pilots with money, jewelry, drugs and sex. The people carried tens and thousands of dollars hoping to be saved.
“Name your price!” said a man in a suit. “I have friends in high places!”
“What do you need dog! I got ecstasy, weed and heroine.” said a white skater guy with Dread’s.
“I even got some meth!”
“I'll give you anything sir!” yelled a woman with two kids. “Just don't let my babies die!”
“I need to get out of here!” said bleach blonde. “You can do anything you want to me!”
The pilots didn't care about any of that. They had their own people to think about. All the sex and drugs you can handle won’t insure your safety. The small planes only had so much room in them. The crowd pushed and pulled on each other like crabs in a bucket. There was crazy talk about rushing the tarmac but their efforts were thwarted by several pilots armed with guns. The pilots and their friends pointed their guns at the crowd and fired into the air a couple of times. Most of the crowd tried to flee but tripped and fell. Many of them were suffocated and crushed in the stampede that followed. The rest were left stranded with no chance for survival.
******
Meanwhile back in the waiting room it was just like a game of follow the leader. One person pulled out the cell phone and everyone else did the same. Many of them dialed one number and then another trying to get someone to answer. “Hey where are you? I am leaving right now. Don’t open the door for anyone.” a man said. Everyone else began making calls too. The broadcast generated a huge increase in traffic online as people began to search for news. Search engine sites like Google and Bing received millions of hits. The web provided updates but social media sites including Face book, Instagram and Twitter gave people a minute by minute firsthand account of the emerging crisis. Live streams and shaky videos of attacks and fighting were broadcast on Skype and transmitted to personal YouTube channels. Other people tuned in to left wing and right wing talk radio stations that blamed everything on terrorists or each other. The crisis made all of us think about the friends and family members that were not with us.
People just wanted to make sure their loved ones were safe. The majority of them decided to leave but others chose to stay. They were already sick and now they were scared out of their minds. I went to the south entrance to talk to Lt. Arvayo. I wanted to update him on the crisis. When I got to the front doors Darden was at the security desk talking to a pediatric nurse. She told Darden her and a few nurses along with some doctors were going home to be with their families.
“My kids are at home by their self.” she explained. “I have to go to them.”
”Don’t worry I am sure their okay.” He replied.
”I tried to call them but they are not answering the house phone or their cell phones.” said the nurse.
“You know how teenagers are!” he reminded her. “They are probably listening to music or chatting on Face book.”
“You are probably right but I still have to go!” she said with a worried look on her face. Darden hugged her goodbye and told her to be careful. They both started working here at the same time. Over the years they had become close friends. A convoy of people followed her but most of the hospital staff decided not to leave. They wanted to stay and care for their patients. When Lt. Arvayo showed up he told us to stay in sight to let the patients and staff know that we had everything under control. He was sure that it would deter anyone thinking about causing any trouble.
“We have to keep our emotions in check because everyone else will take their cues from us!” he stressed. “Remember even in the heat of the moment it's all about doing our job!”
The majority of the hospital was locked and secured after 8:00 pm so the outer doors were already secured. The staff and visitor foot traffic was sent through the south entrance. That way we could control who came in and out. The building was an old army hospital whose inner halls were fitted with steel security and fire doors. We also had several camer
as and doors with alarms. They were monitored from the first floor communications room. Hernandez came over the radio with an announcement. “Attention all officers we have an inbound helicopter. The ETA is ten minutes.”
Darden and Lt. Arvayo went outside to wait on the helicopter. I went back to my post in the ER. They had moved the large Native American man to room # 10. I walked by the room to check on his disposition. The last time I saw him he was violent and defiant. From the doorway this time he looked like he was not doing that well.
“How are you doing sir?”
“I don’t feel that good cop.”
“Don't worry these guys will fix you up in no time.”
“I hope you are right.”
“Well just try to get some sleep.”
“It is hard to sleep when you in pain.”
“Let me see if I can find your nurse.” I closed the door and went down the hall. The gravely ill patient in room # 6's condition was also deteriorating. So far he had failed to respond to treatment. He tried to sit up in bed but couldn't because he was so weak. The nurse gave him a tetanus shot and ran a bunch of tests. All of sudden he let out a large cry and then started convulsing. A few seconds later his eyes rolled back into his head and he stopped breathing. Dr. Black told Dr. Sanchez to call a code blue. They did not know why his health took a turn for the worst. He had even received some antibiotics and other medications through an IV. Now it was all hands on deck as they tried to save his life. I saw his fiancée praying quietly in the hall outside his room. It ended up being too late. In the end they were unable to save his life. Dr. Sanchez called out the time of death and everyone stopped lifesaving procedures.
“We’re sorry for your loss and our thoughts and prayers are with you and his family.” explained Dr. Sanchez. “Would you like us to call a family member or grief counselor for you?”
