Resident calls for action after 34‑minute ambulance response; council to seek answers
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Summary
A resident told the Township Council that a 34‑ to 38‑minute ambulance response for an unconscious child amounted to a 'complete system failure,' prompting the mayor to agree to pursue a meeting with the volunteer ambulance corps and to seek findings from a Pascack Valley EMS study.
At a Nov. 17 special meeting, resident and volunteer EMT Bob Stickel urged the Township of Washington to address an urgent EMS concern: a 34‑ to 38‑minute ambulance response to an unconscious 3‑year‑old. Stickel described that delay as unacceptable and called it a ‘‘complete system failure,’’ saying the family had already provided a detailed letter to council and should not have to repeat the trauma of waiting in the public record.
Stickel asked whether the Pascack Valley EMS study — a taxpayer‑funded review residents said had been completed — had been released and what recommendations it made. He offered to volunteer as a liaison to help review procedures, staffing and coverage gaps.
Mayor Calamari acknowledged that volunteers and police provided immediate assistance but said the administration does not yet have a full explanation for the 38‑minute breakdown and agreed to facilitate a meeting with the volunteer ambulance corps to identify where communications and response failed. The mayor and council committed to seeking answers and any relevant study findings.
No formal action or vote on EMS restructuring took place at the meeting; councilmembers and staff said they would pursue follow‑up and report back at future meetings.