The Social Network & Community JUST for Firefighters
Investigation Finds Washington, D.C. Ambulance Crew Hid During Mass Shooting
ROBY CHAVEZ
WTTG
Reprinted with Permission
WASHINGTON - It was the worst mass shooting in DC history, but FOX 5 has learned not everyone rushed to the scene.
STATter911: Mass Casualty: Emergency radio traffic after 9 shot
Related
DC Fire Investigates "Hiding Ambulance" During Mass Shooting
Sources say an internal DC Fire and EMS investigation shows some first responders actually did all they could to avoid the call for help. DC Fire and EMS confirm the actions of one ambulance crew are under investigation.
It was a chaotic scene the night of March 30, 2010. Nine people were shot on South Capitol Street; eventually 4 would die. The drive by shooting would send DC Fire and Emergency crews into mass casualty mode.
Internal documents obtained exclusively by FOX 5 tracked crews on that night.
By 7:31 p.m., several DC Fire and EMS crews were scrambling to the scene.
However, FOX 5 has learned that one ambulance and possibly the closest one was actually hiding.
Documents show 15 minutes after the first call for help, at 7:47 p.m., Ambulance 32 was still roaming free on its way back to the Irving Street firehouse on what's called delayed response.
The ambulance never responded to the scene.
News of an ambulance avoiding the scene brings little comfort to the grieving mother of 16-year-old Brishell Jones, Nardyne Jefferies.
The teen was one of four who died that day.
"It's appalling. It’s very disturbing. It just hurts. Very disturbing news. It feels like another slap in the face. Your children are not worthy of proper medical treatment and leave them. Whoever gets to them gets to them," said Jefferies as she wiped away tears.
By 7:33 pm an alert went out calling for all available ambulances to respond to the multiple shooting.
The dispatch records read 'multiple patients', 'gunshot wounds', 'serious bleeding'.
The union which represents the civilian medics says the finding is alarming.
"We need to know exactly why that ambulance was not made available especially given the enormity of the scene. We had a mass casualty scene," Kenneth Lyons Pres., AFGE Local 3721
What happened to ambulance 32?
The fire department’s own "I" tracker program shows it was driving away from the area.
Sources tell FOX 5 an internal investigation shows the unit and its two medics did all they could to avoid the mass shooting.
"What if that was one of their children or loved one that needed help. How would you feel if you just ignore a call and children lying there,” said Jefferies.
So what went wrong? It’s not just the crews fault for avoiding the scene.
Sources say an internal investigation shows the dispatchers also missed the ambulance.
Instead, at 7:48, “I-Tracker” records show while Ambulance 30 is arriving at South Capitol Street, Ambulance 32 is still not responding.
Records show in the height of it all at 7:49 p.m. the crew asked to go get fuel and was given the okay.
Sources now tell FOX 5 that fuel records show the crew never did get fuel, instead they were allegedly eating.
According to sources, GPS tracking shows the ambulance was on Mellon Street at the home of one of the medics, just a mile and a half from the shooting scene.
DC Fire and EMS acknowledged the ambulance did not go to the scene.
In a statement, Spokesman Pete Peringer says, "The incident of the shooting and the availability of A32 have been reviewed and has been referred to a DC F & EMS Trial Board. The investigation is continuing."
Sources say there are built-in systems to catch a hiding ambulance. Three supervisors and the Chief in charge that night caught it.
The Watch Commander, Fire Liaison and Emergency Liaison Officer all allegedly missed the automatic computer sensor which should have notified them that Ambulance 32 was missing and was perhaps closer than any other unit.
So far no one has been disciplined.
"If it's determined that they were doing something other than that and used the delayed response to conduct personal business then I think we have a serious problem reminiscent of the Rosenbaum incident," said Lyons.
DC Fire says 40 First Responders did go to the scene, including 3 transport ambulances and four medic ambulances.
FOX 5 has learned the trial board has reviewed the status of ambulance 32 and a resolution is expected soon.
According to documents, Ambulance 32 left Howard University at 7:09pm and was listed as “delayed response status.”
A memo dated March 2006 obtained by FOX 5 shows "delayed response status" is a rule that allows ambulance crews to head back without interruption to the fire house and the area they cover. In this case, back to southeast.
The document clearly states if there is insufficient transport services available to handle emergency calls like a mass casualty situation, they must respond.
In fact, it also says they’re supposed to closely monitor a dispatch channel while returning.
WTTG
Reprinted with Permission
WASHINGTON - It was the worst mass shooting in DC history, but FOX 5 has learned not everyone rushed to the scene.
STATter911: Mass Casualty: Emergency radio traffic after 9 shot
Related
DC Fire Investigates "Hiding Ambulance" During Mass Shooting
Sources say an internal DC Fire and EMS investigation shows some first responders actually did all they could to avoid the call for help. DC Fire and EMS confirm the actions of one ambulance crew are under investigation.
It was a chaotic scene the night of March 30, 2010. Nine people were shot on South Capitol Street; eventually 4 would die. The drive by shooting would send DC Fire and Emergency crews into mass casualty mode.
Internal documents obtained exclusively by FOX 5 tracked crews on that night.
By 7:31 p.m., several DC Fire and EMS crews were scrambling to the scene.
However, FOX 5 has learned that one ambulance and possibly the closest one was actually hiding.
Documents show 15 minutes after the first call for help, at 7:47 p.m., Ambulance 32 was still roaming free on its way back to the Irving Street firehouse on what's called delayed response.
The ambulance never responded to the scene.
News of an ambulance avoiding the scene brings little comfort to the grieving mother of 16-year-old Brishell Jones, Nardyne Jefferies.
The teen was one of four who died that day.
"It's appalling. It’s very disturbing. It just hurts. Very disturbing news. It feels like another slap in the face. Your children are not worthy of proper medical treatment and leave them. Whoever gets to them gets to them," said Jefferies as she wiped away tears.
By 7:33 pm an alert went out calling for all available ambulances to respond to the multiple shooting.
The dispatch records read 'multiple patients', 'gunshot wounds', 'serious bleeding'.
The union which represents the civilian medics says the finding is alarming.
"We need to know exactly why that ambulance was not made available especially given the enormity of the scene. We had a mass casualty scene," Kenneth Lyons Pres., AFGE Local 3721
What happened to ambulance 32?
The fire department’s own "I" tracker program shows it was driving away from the area.
Sources tell FOX 5 an internal investigation shows the unit and its two medics did all they could to avoid the mass shooting.
"What if that was one of their children or loved one that needed help. How would you feel if you just ignore a call and children lying there,” said Jefferies.
So what went wrong? It’s not just the crews fault for avoiding the scene.
Sources say an internal investigation shows the dispatchers also missed the ambulance.
Instead, at 7:48, “I-Tracker” records show while Ambulance 30 is arriving at South Capitol Street, Ambulance 32 is still not responding.
Records show in the height of it all at 7:49 p.m. the crew asked to go get fuel and was given the okay.
Sources now tell FOX 5 that fuel records show the crew never did get fuel, instead they were allegedly eating.
According to sources, GPS tracking shows the ambulance was on Mellon Street at the home of one of the medics, just a mile and a half from the shooting scene.
DC Fire and EMS acknowledged the ambulance did not go to the scene.
In a statement, Spokesman Pete Peringer says, "The incident of the shooting and the availability of A32 have been reviewed and has been referred to a DC F & EMS Trial Board. The investigation is continuing."
Sources say there are built-in systems to catch a hiding ambulance. Three supervisors and the Chief in charge that night caught it.
The Watch Commander, Fire Liaison and Emergency Liaison Officer all allegedly missed the automatic computer sensor which should have notified them that Ambulance 32 was missing and was perhaps closer than any other unit.
So far no one has been disciplined.
"If it's determined that they were doing something other than that and used the delayed response to conduct personal business then I think we have a serious problem reminiscent of the Rosenbaum incident," said Lyons.
DC Fire says 40 First Responders did go to the scene, including 3 transport ambulances and four medic ambulances.
FOX 5 has learned the trial board has reviewed the status of ambulance 32 and a resolution is expected soon.
According to documents, Ambulance 32 left Howard University at 7:09pm and was listed as “delayed response status.”
A memo dated March 2006 obtained by FOX 5 shows "delayed response status" is a rule that allows ambulance crews to head back without interruption to the fire house and the area they cover. In this case, back to southeast.
The document clearly states if there is insufficient transport services available to handle emergency calls like a mass casualty situation, they must respond.
In fact, it also says they’re supposed to closely monitor a dispatch channel while returning.
Replies to This Discussion
-
Permalink Reply by Russ on
-
have to agree with you on this one john. on first read i thought "staging" because they dont want us to have body armor, guns or tazers and since a segment of the population sees us as "targets" (not the store), we'd better believe what my first EMS instructor told me, "the first rule of rescue is dont become a victim"
-
-
lol- 10-26=message recieved...10-4 aint good enough for west florida. on the east coast 10-4 or 10-26 still aint enough. they say "QSL"
dont get me started on the california 11 codes
-
-
the cops in my county fought the GPS because "dispatch didnt need to know where they were all the time" (yes they really said that, i was there). a major asked the deputy why didnt dispatch need to know where they are and FIRE & EMS disp needs to know where the fire trucks and ambulances were? he said that "they need to be able to send the closest unit". The major said "we want to do that too".
For a while, some of the deputies took a cue from the trucking industry and put tin foil on the hocky puck shaped antenna on the cars. The "rat cap blocks the signal. they should say (what i learned in police academy) and said, sometimes we sit blacked out in areas that we know from the knwolodge of our patrol areas that crime occurs in and observe what we see. if you're running around you are visable if you "coop" and watch, usually you see and now a days witht the dash cam on infra red "catch more"
i agree with you, lets wait and see
-
-
i thought "hide" was a little strong too but then again the media is in the news selling business. start off any boaring article with SEX IN THE...or AMBULANCE HID WHILE...and you got yourself a reader
-
-
i'm with you cap 100% something went wrong, it was a weak news cycle and they needed a ouick pop. your last line said it all, it was a violent event and your crews (like ours here) go to alot of shootings and we know what to do. the public does not understand and jumps to conclusions.
be safe up there buddy
-
-
no he aint in the fire service (thats why he's a buff and using CAPS we're on the job and use lower case) CFD, you hit it right on the head and i have done it too. ignore him, he's a wanker its a simple case of FTM-BTB
-
-
its guys like buff that makes me understand why systems want to go to full encryption, however how do you encrypt the visable smoke plume?
-
Permalink Reply by Mark Oomkes on
-
Yeah, but it's all about sounding cool, isn't it?
Blinkie lights, sirens, talking cool codes on the radio, etc.
Agreed, that was sarcasm. lol
-
Permalink Reply by Andy Turnham on
-
Trial by Television, our culture's answere to the Roman Circus.
- ‹ Previous
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- Next ›
© 2024 Created by Firefighter Nation WebChief.
Powered by
