How Long Before They Reach You?

February 3, 2007

What's the problem here? It's a political problem. It's not an EMS

problem. It's not a Fire Department problem. It's a political problem.

It's

caused because the Mayor and the members of the City Council of San are

idiots.

What's the remedy for citizens? Go to the polls and vote the people who are

in office who allow Mr. Walsh to have a job out of office and elect people

who will fire him and change the policies. Simple, no?

Well, golly gee! I don't want to pay any more taxes, and I'll probably

never use the ambulance, so why should I pay to serve a bunch of people who

don't pay taxes? So I'll vote against change and re-elect the guys who promise

NO NEW TAXES.

OH CRAP! My wife is choking. I can't figure out what to do. She's

turning blue. I'll call 911. Ambulance is on the way. (From halfway across

town).

People just don't get it. We all get the kind of government we deserve,

because we have the power to change it. When we don't, we have nobody to blame

but ourselves.

San is a cesspool of political cronyism, poor government, and failed

services. Everybody in the country knows this. It has a sorry, sorry

history of this. So why would anybody even think it might be able to provide

acceptable EMS service?

Don't blame the EMS folks. Blame the politicians and the bureaucrats.

They call the shots.

GG

>

> EMS Ambulances: How Long Before They Reach You?

> Last Update: Feb 3, 2007 8:33 PM

>

> Posted By: Maritza Nunez

>

> It is something you might not think about until you, or someone you love,

> have a life threatening emergency. How long would it take for an ambulance

> to reach you? In a News 4 WOAI Trouble Shooter investigation, Jaie Avila

> reveals why a life saving response could be a long time coming.

> One night last November, Lois called 911 because her one-year-old

> grand-daughter, Chloe, was struggling to breathe. She was born with a narrow

> airway.

>

> The News 4 WOAI Trouble Shooters obtained a copy of the 911 call made

> that night.

>

> 911 DISPATCHER: " San fire and EMS. " LOIS SMITH: " We've got a baby

> that's having trouble breathing. We're in the bathroom with the shower

> running hot. " 911 DISPATCHER: " Okay ma'am, I have a unit on the way. Just

> keep her where you are right now, and make sure she's breathing. If she gets

> any worse off before we get there call us back at 911 okay? "

>

> Eight minutes later a fire truck arrived at 's home in the Dominion

> neighborhood. But without the equipment to help Chloe breath, all

> firefighters could do was hold an oxygen mask over her face, and wait for

> the ambulance.

>

> " She turned blue several times we could have lost her. We were just

> terrified over the whole thing and that wait for that ambulance, oh, it was

> the longest time we ever spent, " says . " It was horrible. "

>

> Fire department records we obtained show the ambulance took 24 minutes to

> get to 's home. But the family is adamant they waited longer than that,

> perhaps as long as 40 minutes. San firefighters say these types of

> calls are becoming frighteningly common. Even with their emergency training

> they feel helpless.

>

> " There's no paramedic on the truck, they don't have any equipment, and so

> it's basically baby-sitting until an ambulance can get there, " says Chris

> Steele, president of the San Professional Firefighters Association.

>

> Why did it take so long for an ambulance to reach 's home? There is a

> new fire station right across I-10, but it doesn't have an ambulance.

>

> The next closest fire station, at Babcock and Loop 1604, does have an

> ambulance, but the night baby Chloe needed it, it sat in the station. That's

> because this ambulance is a " peak " ambulance. It is only on duty part-time,

> whenever the city thinks there might be a higher number of emergencies.

>

> In fact, of the 50 fire stations in San , only 29, have a " full-time "

> ambulance . The rest have either a " peak-time " ambulance, or no ambulance at

> all.

>

> " I assumed every fire station had an ambulance. I thought it just went with

> them, " says Chloe's mother, Brenya.

>

> A second " peak ambulance, " not far from the 's home in the Dominion,

> was also off-duty. So dispatchers turned to the closest " full-time "

> ambulance, all the way down on Vance near I-10. That is a 14 minute

> drive, without traffic.

>

> But that ambulance was busy on another call. So dispatchers had to go to a

> fourth option: Sending a unit from the Stone Oak fire station on road.

> It's crew was just returning from another emergency, and had to make the

> long trek across the north side, and up to the dominion.

>

> " We don't have enough ambulances for a city this size, " says Steele.

>

> Firefighters union President Steele says it's not just a problem in

> one part of town.

>

> For people in Fox Run and other neighborhoods on the far northeast side, the

> closest full-time ambulance is about 12 minutes away on Nacogdoches. Again,

> that's without traffic.

>

> " It is too far, it should be closer. " What angers Lois is that her

> area was annexed by the city a few years ago, and she says they were

> promised fast EMS response in exchange for their tax dollars.

>

> " They should stick to their word and do what they promised, " she says.

>

> The Trouble Shooters took these concerns to the man who oversees the Fire

> and EMS budget, Assistant City Manager Walsh.

>

> Walsh claims slow response times are rare, and says the city has already

> spent a lot of money adding 5 EMS units in the last 2 fiscal years.

>

> " I'm not hearing that you think there's any problem with the number of

> ambulances we have, " Trouble Shooter Jaie Avila recently asked Walsh.

>

> " I'm not saying there isn't a problem. I'm saying that I don't know that

> adding a $1.2 million dollar EMS unit is the only answer, " responded Walsh.

>

> Walsh is looking at less expensive options, like putting paramedics on fire

> trucks, and making crews work more shifts to increase the number of

> ambulances on duty. And he supports the idea of those peak ambulances.

>

> How can EMS leaders know ahead of time when a peak time is going to be?

>

> " Surprisingly enough, calls and the types of calls do follow some type of

> pattern, " says Walsh.

>

> But what if your child has a problem breathing and it's not a peak time?

>

> " Well in those cases we'll have to rely upon the full time unit and at the

> same time recognize that there is a minimum of four peak period units at any

> one time, " says Walsh.

>

> Walsh says the city doesn't see the need to convert its seven part time

> ambulances to full time.

>

> That angers many EMS crews and homeowners like Lois who wonders which

> one will be on duty, the next time her grand daughter is gasping for air.

>

> Walsh says the city will add another full time ambulance in july, bringing

> San 's total to 30. By comparison, Austin has 31 and Dallas has 35.

>

February 3, 2007

Sal,

ARE YOU SERIOUS??!!! They had rather die than call a private service to

back them up. First of all, the privates don't have the blessing of their

medical director, and there is no system for utilization of private services.

It's all about turf, my friend. Anybody who is naive enough to think it's

about patient care needs to take a Valium.

What do you think the SAFD union would think if SAFD were to start

dispatching private services to 911 calls?

Never will happen.

GG

>

> Question: Why isn't SAFD using its local private

> services like they are supposed to, according to

> TDSHS? I am sure there are private services working

> 24 hours.

> Salvador Capuchino Jr

> EMT-Paramedic

> --- wrote:

>

> >

> > EMS Ambulances: How Long Before They Reach You?

> > Last Update: Feb 3, 2007 8:33 PM

> >

> > Posted By: Maritza Nunez

> >

> > It is something you might not think about until you,

> > or someone you love,

> > have a life threatening emergency. How long would it

> > take for an ambulance

> > to reach you? In a News 4 WOAI Trouble Shooter

> > investigation, Jaie Avila

> > reveals why a life saving response could be a long

> > time coming.

> > One night last November, Lois called 911

> > because her one-year-old

> > grand-daughter, Chloe, was struggling to breathe.

> > She was born with a narrow

> > airway.

> >

> > The News 4 WOAI Trouble Shooters obtained a copy of

> > the 911 call made

> > that night.

> >

> > 911 DISPATCHER: " San fire and EMS. " LOIS

> > SMITH: " We've got a baby

> > that's having trouble breathing. We're in the

> > bathroom with the shower

> > running hot. " 911 DISPATCHER: " Okay ma'am, I have a

> > unit on the way. Just

> > keep her where you are right now, and make sure

> > she's breathing. If she gets

> > any worse off before we get there call us back at

> > 911 okay? "

> >

> > Eight minutes later a fire truck arrived at 's

> > home in the Dominion

> > neighborhood. But without the equipment to help

> > Chloe breath, all

> > firefighters could do was hold an oxygen mask over

> > her face, and wait for

> > the ambulance.

> >

> > " She turned blue several times we could have lost

> > her. We were just

> > terrified over the whole thing and that wait for

> > that ambulance, oh, it was

> > the longest time we ever spent, " says . " It was

> > horrible. "

> >

> > Fire department records we obtained show the

> > ambulance took 24 minutes to

> > get to 's home. But the family is adamant they

> > waited longer than that,

> > perhaps as long as 40 minutes. San

> > firefighters say these types of

> > calls are becoming frighteningly common. Even with

> > their emergency training

> > they feel helpless.

> >

> > " There's no paramedic on the truck, they don't have

> > any equipment, and so

> > it's basically baby-sitting until an ambulance can

> > get there, " says Chris

> > Steele, president of the San Professional

> > Firefighters Association.

> >

> > Why did it take so long for an ambulance to reach

> > 's home? There is a

> > new fire station right across I-10, but it doesn't

> > have an ambulance.

> >

> > The next closest fire station, at Babcock and Loop

> > 1604, does have an

> > ambulance, but the night baby Chloe needed it, it

> > sat in the station. That's

> > because this ambulance is a " peak " ambulance. It is

> > only on duty part-time,

> > whenever the city thinks there might be a higher

> > number of emergencies.

> >

> > In fact, of the 50 fire stations in San ,

> > only 29, have a " full-time "

> > ambulance . The rest have either a " peak-time "

> > ambulance, or no ambulance at

> > all.

> >

> > " I assumed every fire station had an ambulance. I

> > thought it just went with

> > them, " says Chloe's mother, Brenya.

> >

> > A second " peak ambulance, " not far from the 's

> > home in the Dominion,

> > was also off-duty. So dispatchers turned to the

> > closest " full-time "

> > ambulance, all the way down on Vance near

> > I-10. That is a 14 minute

> > drive, without traffic.

> >

> > But that ambulance was busy on another call. So

> > dispatchers had to go to a

> > fourth option: Sending a unit from the Stone Oak

> > fire station on road.

> > It's crew was just returning from another emergency,

> > and had to make the

> > long trek across the north side, and up to the

> > dominion.

> >

> > " We don't have enough ambulances for a city this

> > size, " says Steele.

> >

> > Firefighters union President Steele says it's

> > not just a problem in

> > one part of town.

> >

> > For people in Fox Run and other neighborhoods on the

> > far northeast side, the

> > closest full-time ambulance is about 12 minutes away

> > on Nacogdoches. Again,

> > that's without traffic.

> >

> > " It is too far, it should be closer. " What angers

> > Lois is that her

> > area was annexed by the city a few years ago, and

> > she says they were

> > promised fast EMS response in exchange for their tax

> > dollars.

> >

> > " They should stick to their word and do what they

> > promised, " she says.

> >

> > The Trouble Shooters took these concerns to the man

> > who oversees the Fire

> > and EMS budget, Assistant City Manager Walsh.

> >

> > Walsh claims slow response times are rare, and says

> > the city has already

> > spent a lot of money adding 5 EMS units in the last

> > 2 fiscal years.

> >

> > " I'm not hearing that you think there's any problem

> > with the number of

> > ambulances we have, " Trouble Shooter Jaie Avila

> > recently asked Walsh.

> >

> > " I'm not saying there isn't a problem. I'm saying

> > that I don't know that

> > adding a $1.2 million dollar EMS unit is the only

> > answer, " responded Walsh.

> >

> > Walsh is looking at less expensive options, like

> > putting paramedics on fire

> > trucks, and making crews work more shifts to

> > increase the number of

> > ambulances on duty. And he supports the idea of

> > those peak ambulances.

> >

> > How can EMS leaders know ahead of time when a peak

> > time is going to be?

> >

> > " Surprisingly enough, calls and the types of calls

> > do follow some type of

> > pattern, " says Walsh.

> >

> > But what if your child has a problem breathing and

> > it's not a peak time?

> >

> > " Well in those cases we'll have to rely upon the

> > full time unit and at the

> > same time recognize that there is a minimum of four

> > peak period units at any

> > one time, " says Walsh.

> >

> > Walsh says the city doesn't see the need to convert

> > its seven part time

> > ambulances to full time.

> >

> > That angers many EMS crews and homeowners like Lois

> > who wonders which

> > one will be on duty, the next time her grand

> > daughter is gasping for air.

> >

> > Walsh says the city will add another full time

> > ambulance in july, bringing

> > San 's total to 30. By comparison, Austin has

> > 31 and Dallas has 35.

> >

February 3, 2007

EMS Ambulances: How Long Before They Reach You?

Last Update: Feb 3, 2007 8:33 PM

Posted By: Maritza Nunez

It is something you might not think about until you, or someone you love,

have a life threatening emergency. How long would it take for an ambulance

to reach you? In a News 4 WOAI Trouble Shooter investigation, Jaie Avila

reveals why a life saving response could be a long time coming.

One night last November, Lois called 911 because her one-year-old

grand-daughter, Chloe, was struggling to breathe. She was born with a narrow

airway.

The News 4 WOAI Trouble Shooters obtained a copy of the 911 call made

that night.

911 DISPATCHER: " San fire and EMS. " LOIS SMITH: " We've got a baby

that's having trouble breathing. We're in the bathroom with the shower

running hot. " 911 DISPATCHER: " Okay ma'am, I have a unit on the way. Just

keep her where you are right now, and make sure she's breathing. If she gets

any worse off before we get there call us back at 911 okay? "

Eight minutes later a fire truck arrived at 's home in the Dominion

neighborhood. But without the equipment to help Chloe breath, all

firefighters could do was hold an oxygen mask over her face, and wait for

the ambulance.

" She turned blue several times we could have lost her. We were just

terrified over the whole thing and that wait for that ambulance, oh, it was

the longest time we ever spent, " says . " It was horrible. "

Fire department records we obtained show the ambulance took 24 minutes to

get to 's home. But the family is adamant they waited longer than that,

perhaps as long as 40 minutes. San firefighters say these types of

calls are becoming frighteningly common. Even with their emergency training

they feel helpless.

" There's no paramedic on the truck, they don't have any equipment, and so

it's basically baby-sitting until an ambulance can get there, " says Chris

Steele, president of the San Professional Firefighters Association.

Why did it take so long for an ambulance to reach 's home? There is a

new fire station right across I-10, but it doesn't have an ambulance.

The next closest fire station, at Babcock and Loop 1604, does have an

ambulance, but the night baby Chloe needed it, it sat in the station. That's

because this ambulance is a " peak " ambulance. It is only on duty part-time,

whenever the city thinks there might be a higher number of emergencies.

In fact, of the 50 fire stations in San , only 29, have a " full-time "

ambulance . The rest have either a " peak-time " ambulance, or no ambulance at

all.

" I assumed every fire station had an ambulance. I thought it just went with

them, " says Chloe's mother, Brenya.

A second " peak ambulance, " not far from the 's home in the Dominion,

was also off-duty. So dispatchers turned to the closest " full-time "

ambulance, all the way down on Vance near I-10. That is a 14 minute

drive, without traffic.

But that ambulance was busy on another call. So dispatchers had to go to a

fourth option: Sending a unit from the Stone Oak fire station on road.

It's crew was just returning from another emergency, and had to make the

long trek across the north side, and up to the dominion.

" We don't have enough ambulances for a city this size, " says Steele.

Firefighters union President Steele says it's not just a problem in

one part of town.

For people in Fox Run and other neighborhoods on the far northeast side, the

closest full-time ambulance is about 12 minutes away on Nacogdoches. Again,

that's without traffic.

" It is too far, it should be closer. " What angers Lois is that her

area was annexed by the city a few years ago, and she says they were

promised fast EMS response in exchange for their tax dollars.

" They should stick to their word and do what they promised, " she says.

The Trouble Shooters took these concerns to the man who oversees the Fire

and EMS budget, Assistant City Manager Walsh.

Walsh claims slow response times are rare, and says the city has already

spent a lot of money adding 5 EMS units in the last 2 fiscal years.

" I'm not hearing that you think there's any problem with the number of

ambulances we have, " Trouble Shooter Jaie Avila recently asked Walsh.

" I'm not saying there isn't a problem. I'm saying that I don't know that

adding a $1.2 million dollar EMS unit is the only answer, " responded Walsh.

Walsh is looking at less expensive options, like putting paramedics on fire

trucks, and making crews work more shifts to increase the number of

ambulances on duty. And he supports the idea of those peak ambulances.

How can EMS leaders know ahead of time when a peak time is going to be?

" Surprisingly enough, calls and the types of calls do follow some type of

pattern, " says Walsh.

But what if your child has a problem breathing and it's not a peak time?

" Well in those cases we'll have to rely upon the full time unit and at the

same time recognize that there is a minimum of four peak period units at any

one time, " says Walsh.

Walsh says the city doesn't see the need to convert its seven part time

ambulances to full time.

That angers many EMS crews and homeowners like Lois who wonders which

one will be on duty, the next time her grand daughter is gasping for air.

Walsh says the city will add another full time ambulance in july, bringing

San 's total to 30. By comparison, Austin has 31 and Dallas has 35.

February 3, 2007

Question: Why isn't SAFD using its local private

services like they are supposed to, according to

TDSHS? I am sure there are private services working

24 hours.

Salvador Capuchino Jr

EMT-Paramedic

--- wrote:

>

> EMS Ambulances: How Long Before They Reach You?

> Last Update: Feb 3, 2007 8:33 PM

>

> Posted By: Maritza Nunez

>

> It is something you might not think about until you,

> or someone you love,

> have a life threatening emergency. How long would it

> take for an ambulance

> to reach you? In a News 4 WOAI Trouble Shooter

> investigation, Jaie Avila

> reveals why a life saving response could be a long

> time coming.

> One night last November, Lois called 911

> because her one-year-old

> grand-daughter, Chloe, was struggling to breathe.

> She was born with a narrow

> airway.

>

> The News 4 WOAI Trouble Shooters obtained a copy of

> the 911 call made

> that night.

>

> 911 DISPATCHER: " San fire and EMS. " LOIS

> SMITH: " We've got a baby

> that's having trouble breathing. We're in the

> bathroom with the shower

> running hot. " 911 DISPATCHER: " Okay ma'am, I have a

> unit on the way. Just

> keep her where you are right now, and make sure

> she's breathing. If she gets

> any worse off before we get there call us back at

> 911 okay? "

>

> Eight minutes later a fire truck arrived at 's

> home in the Dominion

> neighborhood. But without the equipment to help

> Chloe breath, all

> firefighters could do was hold an oxygen mask over

> her face, and wait for

> the ambulance.

>

> " She turned blue several times we could have lost

> her. We were just

> terrified over the whole thing and that wait for

> that ambulance, oh, it was

> the longest time we ever spent, " says . " It was

> horrible. "

>

> Fire department records we obtained show the

> ambulance took 24 minutes to

> get to 's home. But the family is adamant they

> waited longer than that,

> perhaps as long as 40 minutes. San

> firefighters say these types of

> calls are becoming frighteningly common. Even with

> their emergency training

> they feel helpless.

>

> " There's no paramedic on the truck, they don't have

> any equipment, and so

> it's basically baby-sitting until an ambulance can

> get there, " says Chris

> Steele, president of the San Professional

> Firefighters Association.

>

> Why did it take so long for an ambulance to reach

> 's home? There is a

> new fire station right across I-10, but it doesn't

> have an ambulance.

>

> The next closest fire station, at Babcock and Loop

> 1604, does have an

> ambulance, but the night baby Chloe needed it, it

> sat in the station. That's

> because this ambulance is a " peak " ambulance. It is

> only on duty part-time,

> whenever the city thinks there might be a higher

> number of emergencies.

>

> In fact, of the 50 fire stations in San ,

> only 29, have a " full-time "

> ambulance . The rest have either a " peak-time "

> ambulance, or no ambulance at

> all.

>

> " I assumed every fire station had an ambulance. I

> thought it just went with

> them, " says Chloe's mother, Brenya.

>

> A second " peak ambulance, " not far from the 's

> home in the Dominion,

> was also off-duty. So dispatchers turned to the

> closest " full-time "

> ambulance, all the way down on Vance near

> I-10. That is a 14 minute

> drive, without traffic.

>

> But that ambulance was busy on another call. So

> dispatchers had to go to a

> fourth option: Sending a unit from the Stone Oak

> fire station on road.

> It's crew was just returning from another emergency,

> and had to make the

> long trek across the north side, and up to the

> dominion.

>

> " We don't have enough ambulances for a city this

> size, " says Steele.

>

> Firefighters union President Steele says it's

> not just a problem in

> one part of town.

>

> For people in Fox Run and other neighborhoods on the

> far northeast side, the

> closest full-time ambulance is about 12 minutes away

> on Nacogdoches. Again,

> that's without traffic.

>

> " It is too far, it should be closer. " What angers

> Lois is that her

> area was annexed by the city a few years ago, and

> she says they were

> promised fast EMS response in exchange for their tax

> dollars.

>

> " They should stick to their word and do what they

> promised, " she says.

>

> The Trouble Shooters took these concerns to the man

> who oversees the Fire

> and EMS budget, Assistant City Manager Walsh.

>

> Walsh claims slow response times are rare, and says

> the city has already

> spent a lot of money adding 5 EMS units in the last

> 2 fiscal years.

>

> " I'm not hearing that you think there's any problem

> with the number of

> ambulances we have, " Trouble Shooter Jaie Avila

> recently asked Walsh.

>

> " I'm not saying there isn't a problem. I'm saying

> that I don't know that

> adding a $1.2 million dollar EMS unit is the only

> answer, " responded Walsh.

>

> Walsh is looking at less expensive options, like

> putting paramedics on fire

> trucks, and making crews work more shifts to

> increase the number of

> ambulances on duty. And he supports the idea of

> those peak ambulances.

>

> How can EMS leaders know ahead of time when a peak

> time is going to be?

>

> " Surprisingly enough, calls and the types of calls

> do follow some type of

> pattern, " says Walsh.

>

> But what if your child has a problem breathing and

> it's not a peak time?

>

> " Well in those cases we'll have to rely upon the

> full time unit and at the

> same time recognize that there is a minimum of four

> peak period units at any

> one time, " says Walsh.

>

> Walsh says the city doesn't see the need to convert

> its seven part time

> ambulances to full time.

>

> That angers many EMS crews and homeowners like Lois

> who wonders which

> one will be on duty, the next time her grand

> daughter is gasping for air.

>

> Walsh says the city will add another full time

> ambulance in july, bringing

> San 's total to 30. By comparison, Austin has

> 31 and Dallas has 35.

>

February 3, 2007

Then maybe TDSHS needs to step in in the form of hefty

fines for their arrogance. An EMS 911 provider in the

Valley had a few too many bad days (3 in a row) and

now they are finally utulizing the other private

providers in the area. According to a TDSHS rep all

911 providers are supposed to utiize private providers

in the area. I know of one FD service that does.

Salvador Capuchino Jr

EMT-Paramedic

--- wegandy1938@... wrote:

> Sal,

>

> ARE YOU SERIOUS??!!! They had rather die than call

> a private service to

> back them up. First of all, the privates don't

> have the blessing of their

> medical director, and there is no system for

> utilization of private services.

>

> It's all about turf, my friend. Anybody who is

> naive enough to think it's

> about patient care needs to take a Valium.

>

> What do you think the SAFD union would think if SAFD

> were to start

> dispatching private services to 911 calls?

>

> Never will happen.

>

> GG

> In a message dated 2/4/07 12:07:25 AM,

> scapuchino@... writes:

>

> >

> > Question: Why isn't SAFD using its local private

> > services like they are supposed to, according to

> > TDSHS? I am sure there are private services

> working

> > 24 hours.

> > Salvador Capuchino Jr

> > EMT-Paramedic

> > --- wrote:

> >

> > >

> > > EMS Ambulances: How Long Before They Reach You?

> > > Last Update: Feb 3, 2007 8:33 PM

> > >

> > > Posted By: Maritza Nunez

> > >

> > > It is something you might not think about until

> you,

> > > or someone you love,

> > > have a life threatening emergency. How long

> would it

> > > take for an ambulance

> > > to reach you? In a News 4 WOAI Trouble Shooter

> > > investigation, Jaie Avila

> > > reveals why a life saving response could be a

> long

> > > time coming.

> > > One night last November, Lois called 911

> > > because her one-year-old

> > > grand-daughter, Chloe, was struggling to

> breathe.

> > > She was born with a narrow

> > > airway.

> > >

> > > The News 4 WOAI Trouble Shooters obtained a copy

> of

> > > the 911 call made

> > > that night.

> > >

> > > 911 DISPATCHER: " San fire and EMS. " LOIS

> > > SMITH: " We've got a baby

> > > that's having trouble breathing. We're in the

> > > bathroom with the shower

> > > running hot. " 911 DISPATCHER: " Okay ma'am, I

> have a

> > > unit on the way. Just

> > > keep her where you are right now, and make sure

> > > she's breathing. If she gets

> > > any worse off before we get there call us back

> at

> > > 911 okay? "

> > >

> > > Eight minutes later a fire truck arrived at

> 's

> > > home in the Dominion

> > > neighborhood. But without the equipment to help

> > > Chloe breath, all

> > > firefighters could do was hold an oxygen mask

> over

> > > her face, and wait for

> > > the ambulance.

> > >

> > > " She turned blue several times we could have

> lost

> > > her. We were just

> > > terrified over the whole thing and that wait for

> > > that ambulance, oh, it was

> > > the longest time we ever spent, " says . " It

> was

> > > horrible. "

> > >

> > > Fire department records we obtained show the

> > > ambulance took 24 minutes to

> > > get to 's home. But the family is adamant

> they

> > > waited longer than that,

> > > perhaps as long as 40 minutes. San

> > > firefighters say these types of

> > > calls are becoming frighteningly common. Even

> with

> > > their emergency training

> > > they feel helpless.

> > >

> > > " There's no paramedic on the truck, they don't

> have

> > > any equipment, and so

> > > it's basically baby-sitting until an ambulance

> can

> > > get there, " says Chris

> > > Steele, president of the San

> Professional

> > > Firefighters Association.

> > >

> > > Why did it take so long for an ambulance to

> reach

> > > 's home? There is a

> > > new fire station right across I-10, but it

> doesn't

> > > have an ambulance.

> > >

> > > The next closest fire station, at Babcock and

> Loop

> > > 1604, does have an

> > > ambulance, but the night baby Chloe needed it,

> it

> > > sat in the station. That's

> > > because this ambulance is a " peak " ambulance. It

> is

> > > only on duty part-time,

> > > whenever the city thinks there might be a higher

> > > number of emergencies.

> > >

> > > In fact, of the 50 fire stations in San ,

> > > only 29, have a " full-time "

> > > ambulance . The rest have either a " peak-time "

> > > ambulance, or no ambulance at

> > > all.

> > >

> > > " I assumed every fire station had an ambulance.

> I

> > > thought it just went with

> > > them, " says Chloe's mother, Brenya.

> > >

> > > A second " peak ambulance, " not far from the

> 's

> > > home in the Dominion,

> > > was also off-duty. So dispatchers turned to the

> > > closest " full-time "

> > > ambulance, all the way down on Vance

> near

> > > I-10. That is a 14 minute

> > > drive, without traffic.

> > >

> > > But that ambulance was busy on another call. So

> > > dispatchers had to go to a

> > > fourth option: Sending a unit from the Stone Oak

> > > fire station on road.

> > > It's crew was just returning from another

> emergency,

> > > and had to make the

> > > long trek across the north side, and up to the

> > > dominion.

> > >

> > > " We don't have enough ambulances for a city this

> > > size, " says Steele.

> > >

> > > Firefighters union President Steele says

> it's

> > > not just a problem in

> > > one part of town.

> > >

> > > For people in Fox Run and other neighborhoods on

> the

> > > far northeast side, the

> > > closest full-time ambulance is about 12 minutes

> away

> > > on Nacogdoches. Again,

> > > that's without traffic.

> > >

> > > " It is too far, it should be closer. " What

> angers

> > > Lois is that her

> > > area was annexed by the city a few years ago,

> and

> > > she says they were

> > > promised fast EMS response in exchange for their

> tax

> > > dollars.

> > >

> > > " They should stick to their word and do what

> they

> > > promised, " she says.

> > >

> > > The Trouble Shooters took these concerns to the

> man

> > > who oversees the Fire

>

=== message truncated ===

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