A 25-year-old female patient from San Mateo, in Putnam County, was being transported through northwest Volusia County June 23 by Putnam County Fire Rescue.

At some point, “she started to become combative in the back of the ambulance.”

The EMTs stopped at the intersection of U.S. Highway 17 and State Road 40, and the Problem Patient began unbuckling her seat belts.

When one EMT tried to get control of her, Problem Patient bit his hand.

She emerged from the ambulance and ran to the gas station at the above-mentioned intersection.

Her boyfriend had been following the ambulance in his own car, and Problem Patient quickly got into his back seat and closed the door.

By this point, a Volusia County sheriff ’s deputy had arrived on-scene, and Boyfriend told the deputy that Problem Patient “was hallucinating due to a procedure that was done earlier” in the day.

Deputy had difficulty communicating with Problem Patient through a closed door, so “she [the deputy] opened the back door to gain access to [the patient].”

This may have been a mistake.

Once the door was open, Problem Patient “started to physically attack [the deputy] by scratching, striking and … was attempting to gouge her eyes out.”

Deputy used her Taser stun gun, but Problem Patient apparently was immune to its effects, and the crazy lady ran away.

Not wanting her to run into traffic, Deputy ran after Problem Patient and tried to restrain her, which led to more scratching, striking and gouging.

Eventually two deputies working together subdued the out-of-control lady.

Another deputy arrived and noted that the first deputy had “multiple lacerations to her face, to include contusions to her right eyelid.”

A bite mark could also be seen on her upper left arm. Not surprisingly, the

wounded deputy decided to press charges against Problem Patient.

Deputy was taken to AdventHealth DeLand to be treated and was told she’d also need to visit an eye doctor.

Problem Patient was driven to the DeLand hospital, “for her initial medical complaint”

 and for treatment of minor injuries she received while resisting. She was charged with aggravated battery on a law-enforcement officer and resisting an officer with violence.

What a shame Putnam County Fire Rescue didn’t just transport the woman to a Putnam hospital and not bring all that mayhem to us here in Volusia!

— By Keith Allen, based on local police-agency reports. If you have information about a crime, call Crime Stoppers, 1-888-277-TIPS. You could be eligible for a reward.