The Ambulance Employees Association of South Australia says the State Government has failed to fix the ramping crisis, with August 2026 recording the worst month of ambulance ramping ever seen in South Australia.
A total of 5,891 ambulance hours were lost to ramping during August, exceeding the previous record and confirming that the ramping crisis continues to worsen.
These figures are not just numbers. They represent thousands of hours where ambulances were unavailable to respond to South Australians’ emergencies because they were stuck on hospital ramps.
The August figures equate to more than 15 fully crewed ambulances being ramped for their entire 12-hour shifts every single day in August alone.
While ambulances are trapped on hospital ramps, patients in our community are left waiting longer for emergency care in their time of need.
In August alone, SAAS met the required response time for just 51 per cent of Priority 2 emergencies, meaning only one in two patients received an ambulance in time for their life-threatening emergency.
The Government was elected on a commitment to fix ramping. Yet, South Australia has recorded the worst month of ramping on record, this follows the highest levels on record year on year over the past four years.
Ramping is not inevitable. It is the direct result of policy decisions and can be solved if our government is prepared to take action.
The AEA is calling on the State Government to commit to the elimination of ramping and implement urgent measures to free ambulances from hospital ramps and return them to our community where they belong.
Quotes attributable to AEA General Secretary Paul Ekkelboom
“The Government promised to fix ramping. Yet, South Australians have just experienced the worst month of ramping ever recorded. For the third winter in a row under this Government, ramping has reached new record highs.”
“Five thousand eight hundred and ninety-one hours lost to ramping means that, every single day during August, more than 15 fully crewed ambulances were unavailable to respond to South Australians in their time of need because they were stuck on hospital ramps”
“When an ambulance is stuck on a hospital ramp, it cannot respond to the next cardiac arrest, stroke, road crash or life-threatening emergency.”
“Ramping is unacceptable, it is dangerous and it places our South Australian community at risk.”
“Ramping is a policy choice of Government. Failing to fix ramping is unacceptable. The Government must stop accepting record levels of ramping and commit to its elimination.”
Authorised by AEA General Secretary Paul Ekkelboom