EMS personnel on the scene of a medical call at the Kennedy Senior Center on 4th Street were leaving the building with the packaged patient when they realized the rig had been stolen around 11:30 a.m., Reading Fire Chief William I. Stoudt, Jr. said.
Focusing on their duty, paramedics reported the incident and requested another unit to transport their patient.
Sometime around 1 p.m., an off-duty Reading fire department member spotted the ambulance on Route 30 near Strasburg and called police, authorities said.
The firefighter followed the ambulance until State Police caught up and pursued the vehicle, authorities said.
The ambulance became involved in an accident with a truck somewhere in the Intercourse area, and police were able to apprehend the suspect, Stoudt said.
As a result of the impact, the ambulance was damaged but no injuries were reported.
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