Fourteen minutes on the Egbeda road

The call came in at 9.42pm: a commercial bus and a motorcycle, three people down, nobody moving them. Two responders were on the road within four minutes because they keep their kit in the boot.

The first thing you do is not medical. It is getting the crowd back and stopping the traffic, because the second crash into a crash scene is the one that kills responders. Then bleeding, then airway, then the decision nobody wants: which hospital will actually take three patients tonight.

All three were admitted by 10.31pm. One had no family reachable and no money; we covered the deposit and a responder stayed until his brother arrived at 2am. We publish times like these because a response service that will not tell you how long it took is asking you to take a great deal on faith.