Concerned Roosevelt Island residents gathered at the Good Shepherd Community Center last evening for a Town Hall meeting focusing on the too frequent NYC 911 emergency response time delays to Roosevelt Island.
Council Member Kallos began the Town Hall and introduced NYPD Inspector Rich Napalitano, Commanding Officer of the NYC 911 Emergency System.
Inspector Napolitano described the 911 call system and confirmed that all 96 Roosevelt Island addresses have been added to the 911 system so that as soon as a Roosevelt Island address is given to a 911 Operator, Roosevelt Island will appear on the Operator's screen. Inspector Napolitano added that the 911 Operators have received refresher training regarding Roosevelt Island.
Following, Inspector Napolitano's presentation, the Town Hall was opened up for questions from residents.
Roosevelt Island Operating Corp (RIOC) Acting President Susan Rosenthal reported yesterday to the June 23 RIOC Board of Directors meeting that after reaching out to the NYPD 911 Operations and Information Technology Departments, a technology software solution may have been found to fix the problem of NYC 911 emergency ambulance response time delays to Roosevelt Island.
As reported previously, NYC 911 Operators ask callers for Roosevelt Island cross streets before dispatching help to a Roosevelt Island resident, worker or visitor in need. The problem is that Roosevelt Island, unlike most of NYC, does not have cross streets, which causes confusion and delays in response time.
Ms Rosenthal said that as of yesterday, the technology solution proposed is to input:
... the 96 addresses on Roosevelt Island...
into the 911 system, so that:
... when one of those addresses come in, it will say Roosevelt Island...
and the 911 Operator will know where to dispatch the emergency vehicle.
Ms. Rosenthal added that we should know by next Tuesday, June 28, whether inputting the 96 Roosevelt Island addresses into the 911 system will solve this problem.
June 28 happens to be the date of a Roosevelt Island Town Hall meeting with NYC Council Member Ben Kallos, NY State Assembly Member Rebecca Seawright and NY State Senator Jose Serrano where the issue of 911 emergency response time delays will be raised by concerned residents.
Below is the video of Ms. Rosenthal's President's Report to the RIOC Board which includes the 911 Emergency response discussion as well as info on:
New Roosevelt Island Ferry Dock location (still to be determined),
Hazardous seawall railings repair,
Cultural center repair,
New RIOC web site and
July 4 Fireworks viewing registration.
Ms Rosenthal had previously sent this May 23,2016 letter about problems with Roosevelt Island 911 emergency response time to NYPD Chief of Community Affairs Joanne Jaffe:
Chief Jaffe,
As Acting President of the Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation (RIOC), I am writing to express my great concern regarding an incident that occurred on March 15, 2016, when a Roosevelt Island resident died of a heart attack while waiting for EMS to respond. When 911 was first contacted on that date, the operator insisted that the caller provide a cross-street, as the dispatch computer located Roosevelt Island in Queens County. The caller expressed that there was no cross street and that Roosevelt Island is located in Manhattan, but to no avail. Approximately fifteen minutes later, when EMS still had not arrived, 911 was contacted again, but by then, it was too late.
As you are aware, Roosevelt Island is situated in the East River of Manhattan, and though technically considered part of Manhattan, it is vehicle accessible by bridge from Long Island City. It also consists of a single roadway, known as Main Street and there are no cross streets on the Island.
The Chief of our Public Safety Department, John McManus, has been in contact with senior management at the Office of Emergency Management regarding this incident and he is coordinating a meeting with OEM, senior leadership of the New York City Police and Fire Departments, and the New York City Emergency Medical Service, to discuss this matter further and to prevent the event described above, from happening in the future.
I am looking forward to working with you and the other entities and am hopeful that our collaboration and continued discussions will resolve and correct any issues that caused this unfortunate incident on March 15, 2016.
All 911 calls are first answered by an NYPD Police Communications Technician (PCT). The PCT determines the nature of the emergency and routes it to the proper dispatcher (NYPD, FDNY or FDNY EMS) who determines the appropriate responders for the incident and dispatches them to the scene.
The reports on this page only cover calls that the City received through 911. Emergency incidents can come to first responder agencies from outside 911 including from fire alarm systems, street observations, and inter-agency requests for assistance (e.g. NYPD calls for an ambulance).
Due to the complex and varied nature of the calls to the City's 911 system, the process of responding to those emergencies involves seven different systems that work together to handle any type of incident that may occur. OCEC partnered with the Mayor's Office of Data Analytics to measure all the time segments involved in responding to an emergency to determine the average response time to all categories of call types. This information allows us to look at how much time each stage of the process takes and find ways the process can be improved to reduce overall response time and maintain a high level of performance during disasters.
Figure 1 is a high level schematic of the call taking and dispatching process.
Figure 2 is a detailed schematic of the call taking and dispatch segments and the agency responsible.
Hopefully, inputting the 96 Roosevelt Island addresses into the 911 system will solve this problem.
Roosevelt Island's elected officials are hosting a Roosevelt Island Town Hall Meeting 6:30 PM, June 28 at the Good Shepherd Community Center (543 Main Street)
One issue of concern that should be discussed is the 911 emergency response time delay to Roosevelt Island.
Roosevelt Island Operating Corp (RIOC) Acting President Susan Rosenthal sent this May 23,2016 letter about problems with Roosevelt Island 911 emergency response time to NYPD Chief of Community Affairs Joanne Jaffe:
Chief Jaffe,
As Acting President of the Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation (RIOC), I am writing to express my great concern regarding an incident that occurred on March 15, 2016, when a Roosevelt Island resident died of a heart attack while waiting for EMS to respond. When 911 was first contacted on that date, the operator insisted that the caller provide a cross-street, as the dispatch computer located Roosevelt Island in Queens County. The caller expressed that there was no cross street and that Roosevelt Island is located in Manhattan, but to no avail. Approximately fifteen minutes later, when EMS still had not arrived, 911 was contacted again, but by then, it was too late.
As you are aware, Roosevelt Island is situated in the East River of Manhattan, and though technically considered part of Manhattan, it is vehicle accessible by bridge from Long Island City. It also consists of a single roadway, known as Main Street and there are no cross streets on the Island.
The Chief of our Public Safety Department, John McManus, has been in contact with senior management at the Office of Emergency Management regarding this incident and he is coordinating a meeting with OEM, senior leadership of the New York City Police and Fire Departments, and the New York City Emergency Medical Service, to discuss this matter further and to prevent the event described above, from happening in the future.
I am looking forward to working with you and the other entities and am hopeful that our collaboration and continued discussions will resolve and correct any issues that caused this unfortunate incident on March 15, 2016.
A previous post reported on the efforts of Roosevelt Island elected officials to establish a joint medical emergency notification system for the Roosevelt Island Public Safety Department and the NYC Fire Department's Emergency Medical Services (EMS). These efforts began after this incident in which an ambulance took more than 20 minutes to reach a one year old baby at the Octagon who was having a seizure. (Fortunately, the baby is now OK but had stopped breathing and was turning blue).
During last Saturday's Roosevelt Island Cherry Blossom Festival, I spoke with Assembly Member Micah Kellner who informed me that a joint medical emergency notification system was put in place between the Public Safety Department and (EMS). Yesterday, Mr. Kellner's office sent over this press release with additional details.
New York State Assembly Member Micah Z. Kellner (D-Upper East Side, Yorkville, and Roosevelt Island) and the New York City Fire Department (FDNY), announced today that Emergency Medical Services (EMS) will partner with Roosevelt Island’s Public Safety Department to share information regarding medical emergency calls originating from the Island.
In response to a letter organized by Assembly Member Kellner, and signed by Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer, Senator Jose Serrano, and Council Member Jessica Lappin, the FDNY will issue automatic notifications to the Public Safety Department when they receive a call through 911 for emergency medical assistance on Roosevelt Island. Effective immediately, the FDNY will call Public Safety directly while the emergency notification system is automated.
Up until this recent change, when Public Safety was called directly about a medical emergency on the Island they informed 911. However the reverse did not apply; Public Safety was not informed when there was a call to 911 for medical assistance. This inequality left residents in limbo during an extremely vulnerable and often frantic time.
“Emergency services shouldn't depend on what phone number you call,” said Assembly Member Micah Z. Kellner. “I am glad that the FDNY has recognized the valuable partner Public Safety can be in providing emergency services on Roosevelt Island.”
Public Safety is comprised of 38 officers, each of whom has been granted New York State Peace Officer Status, as well as New York City Special Patrolman Status. Each officer is certified in CPR, Automated External Deliberator (AED) use, and First Aid with the American Heart Association. Public Safety also has a single officer who is a certified Emergency Medical Technician.
Although Roosevelt Island is part of the Borough of Manhattan, its only ground access point is the Roosevelt Island Bridge that connects the Island with Astoria, Queens. This presents unique challenges, particularly with respect to Emergency Services. Response times to Roosevelt Island have been a persistent concern for Island residents.
“Improving interagency communication is central to providing the best possible response for those in need,” Assembly Member Kellner continued. “I applaud their quick action on this common sense request to ensure that all New Yorkers receive the fastest available response in an emergency.”
“It is welcome news that the City’s 911 emergency system will now issue automatic notifications to Roosevelt Island’s Public Safety Department whenever a call for emergency medical assistance is made on the Island,” said Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney. “I salute Assemblyman Kellner for taking the lead on this important issue and helping to ensure that Roosevelt Islanders’ health and safety is served in the most effective and comprehensive manner possible.”
“All New Yorkers deserve a prompt response and quality care when faced with an emergency. This change in procedure will help ensure the safety of Roosevelt Islanders and will ultimately save lives,” said State Senator Jose Serrano. “It is critical that all government agencies communicate effectively and work together to provide the highest quality of service for the people who count on them, and I commend the FDNY for swiftly addressing this issue.”
“The city needs to improve its emergency response time to Roosevelt Island. But until that happens, this measure will ensure that Island residents receive a timely response when they need it most,” Council Member Jessica Lappin said. “I’m glad that Assembly Member Kellner took the lead on this issue and I’m proud to have joined him in helping forge this important interagency collaboration.”
Roosevelt Island is a mixed income, racially diverse waterfront community situated in the East River of New York City between Manhattan and Queens and is jurisdictionally part of Manhattan. The Roosevelt Island Tramway, which connects Roosevelt Island to the rest of Manhattan, has become the iconic symbol of Roosevelt Island to its residents.
The Purpose of this Blog is to provide accurate and timely information about Roosevelt Island as well as a forum for residents to express opinions and engage in a dialogue to improve our community.
