Durban- Paramedics and a patient they were transporting to a local hospital scrambled to safety after the ambulance caught alight near Mariannhill on Tuesday.
The ambulance belongs to the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Health Emergency Medical Services.
Robert Mckenzie, EMS spokesperson, said the paramedics were travelling to the hospital after fetching a patient from the Nsiswakazi area when the fire started.
"The ambulance services the Mariannhill area and is situated at the Mariannhill base. It is alleged that the fire began in the engine compartment. The crew and the patient managed to alight the ambulance. None of them was injured," he said.
Mckenzie said every ambulance was important to them and to ensure that service delivery continues, management will change and adjust its vehicle operation plans.
"The medical service to the area will continue. The ambulance was part of the old fleet. The yellow and red markings show this. The new ambulances have green and yellow signage on the vehicles," Mckenzie said.
Colonel Thembheka Mbhele, a police spokesperson, said no case had been opened yet.
The ambulance was extensively damaged by the time the fire department had arrived to douse the flames. The patient was transported to a hospital safely in another ambulance.