WORKING UNIT, SOME 80 MEMBERS OF PARAMEDICS AND EMTs HERE.
WE’LL HAVE TO BE PRETTY QUICK
HERE WITH SOME OF OUR MOVEMENTS.
I WANT TO BRING IN VINCENT V
VERIALI.
VERIALI. VINCENT, STAND BY FOR A MINUTE.
HE’S THE EMT LIEUTENANT AND
PRESIDENT OF THE EMS OFFICERS
JUNE YOON JUNE
UNION AND THE FDNY.
ALSO A PRESUMED CASE OF COVID-19
HIMSELF
HIMSELF HIMSELF.
HIMSELF. SO THIS IS WHAT WE’VE BEEN
SEEING THROUGHOUT THE MORNING,
GUYS, BY THE WAY.
THE CALL COMES IN, THAT 911 CALL
COMES IN, AND THESE ARE THE
FOLKS WHO RUSH OUT.
IN JUST A MOMENT WE’RE GOING TO
TALK ABOUT SPECIFICALLY THE
KINDS OF CALLS THAT THEY’RE
GETTING.
GETTING. THEY’RE GETTING A LOT OF CARDIAC
CALLS.
CALLS. LET’S START THERE, START WITH
THESE CARDIAC CALLS YOU GUYS
HAVE BEEN GETTING.
ON SUNDAY I UNDERSTAND IT WAS AN
ESPECIALLY DIFFICULT DAY FOR YOU
GUYS.
GUYS. >> YES, IT WAS.
WE RECEIVED AN INCREASE IN THE
CARDIAC ARREST CALLS.
NORMALLY WE’D SEE ABOUT 80 CALLS
THROUGHOUT THE CITY OF NEW YORK.
NOW WE’RE SEEING IT JUMP TO 250,
300 CALLS A DAY.
A LOT OF DEATH, A LOT OF WORK
FOR OUR MEMBERS THROUGHOUT THE
CITY.
CITY. >> MY UNDERSTANDING IS OF THOSE
CALLS THAT YOU’RE GETTING, THOSE
CARDIAC ARREST CALLS, SOME 75%
OF THE PEOPLE WHO ARE DYING --
USUALLY THAT FIGURE IS FAR
LOWER.
LOWER. >> I’M SORRY.
>> ROUGHLY 70% OF THE PEOPLE,
THOSE CARDIAC CALLS ON SUNDAY,
THEY DIED.
THEY DIED. DO WE KNOW WHY THAT FIGURE SEEMS
TO BE SO MUCH HIGHER RIGHT NOW
THAN USUAL?
THAN USUAL? >> I DEFINITELY BELIEVE IT’S THE
CORONAVIRUS ATTACKING THE
RESPIRATORY SYSTEM IN PEOPLE.
I HAD THE CORONAVIRUS EARLY ON,
AND I CAN TELL YOU, IT MAKES IT
VERY DIFFICULT TO BREATHE.
SO ESPECIALLY IF YOU HAVE AN
UNDERLYING CONDITION LIKE ASTHMA
OR RESPIRATORY PROBLEMS AND YOU
GET THIS VIRUS, YOU CAN GO INTO
RESPIRATORY ARREST AND THEN
CARDIAC ARREST.
CARDIAC ARREST. I DEFINITELY UNDERSTAND WHY THE
DEATH RATE WOULD GO HIGHER.
>> AGAIN, WORD COMING DOWN THAT
WE’VE GOT 597 MEMBERS OF THE
FDNY HAVE TESTED POSITIVE FOR
COVID-19.
COVID-19. YOU THINK THAT NUMBER IS LIKELY
MUCH HIGHER.
MUCH HIGHER. WHY?
WHY? >> I THINK IT’S MUCH HIGHER.
WE STILL DON’T HAVE ADEQUATE
TESTING.
TESTING. WE STILL DON’T HAVE -- FROM THE
VERY BEGINNING WE’VE ASKED FOR
TESTING, AND FDNY DOESN’T
PROVIDE TESTING.
PROVIDE TESTING. OUR MEMBERS ARE WORKING FOUR,
FIVE DAYS A WEEK, 16 HOURS A
DAY.
DAY. SO DON’T EVEN HAVE TIME TO GO
GET TESTED IF THEY CAN FIND A
SITE.
SITE. IT’S A DUAL PROBLEM.
>> YOU ALSO SAID SOMETHING TO ME
BEFORE WE CAME ON THE AIR THAT I
HAD NOT CONSIDERED.
YOU’VE GOT A NUMBER OF YOUR GUYS
AND WOMEN AS WELL WHO WORK A
16-HOUR SHIFT, AND AT THE END OF
THAT SHIFT, TO PROTECT THEIR
LOVED ONES, THEY’RE NOT GOING
BACK INSIDE THAT ONE-BEDROOM
APARTMENT.
APARTMENT. >> THAT’S CORRECT.
>> WHAT ARE THEY DOING?
>> THE FDNY HAS PROVIDED SOME
LODGING.
LODGING. UNFORTUNATELY IT’S NOT ENOUGH
THAT IS AVAILABLE FOR OUR
MEMBERS.
MEMBERS. SO MANY OF THEM ARE CHOOSING TO
STAY IN THEIR CARS AFTER WORKING
16 HOURS BECAUSE THEY DON’T WANT
TO BRING THIS HOME TO THEIR
LOVED ONES, TO THEIR WIFE, THEIR
CHILDREN, THEIR HUSBANDS.
MANY OF THEM LIVE IN SMALL
APARTMENTS WHERE THEY CAN’T
QUARANTINE THEMSELVES FROM THEIR
FAMILIES.
FAMILIES. SO THEY ARE CHOOSING TO STAY IN
THEIR CARS FOR THE NIGHT OR AT
THE END OF THEIR TOUR FOR SIX OR
SEVEN HOURS AND THEN GO BACK TO
WORK.
WORK. >> NORMALLY FDNY GETS ABOUT
4,000 CALLS A DAY.
WHAT ARE YOU GUYS SEEING RIGHT
NOW?
NOW? >> WE’VE SEEN THE CALL VOLUME
RISE AS HIGH AS 7,200 CALLS.
LAST NIGHT IT WAS A LITTLE BIT
LOWER AT 6,250 IN THE CALL
VOLUME.
VOLUME. BUT IT’S STILL A 50% INCREASE IN
THE CALL VOLUME WE’RE USED TO
SEEING.
SEEING. >> HOW ARE THEY HOLDING UP?
HOW ARE YOUR GUYS, HOW ARE THEY
COPING THROUGHOUT ALL THIS?
>> IT’S TOUGH, AS YOU CAN
IMAGINE.
IMAGINE. A LOT OF THEM ARE PHYSICALLY,
MENTALLY AND EMOTIONALLY
DRAINED.
DRAINED. BUT YOU KNOW, WE’RE DEDICATED,
COMMITTED MEMBERS WHO SAVE
LIVES.
LIVES. THEY’RE ALL STEPPING UP AND
WORKING.
WORKING. WE HAVE A LARGE PERCENTAGE OF
THE WORKFORCE OUT SICK.
WHEN YOU INCREASE CALL VOLUME,
IT’S TOUGH ON YOU.
>> WE APPRECIATE YOU.