By Rachel Engel
ROCHESTER, N.Y. — A firefighter suffering from heat exhaustion on the fireground waited more than seven minutes for an ambulance to transport him for medical attention, prompting the Rochester Firefighter’s Association to weigh in on the incident, Rochester First reported.
In a statement, the City of Rochester said they are “looking into this matter with AMR. However, it is important to note that the injured firefighter was treated on-scene and an ambulance was available to transport him at any time as needed.”
Eddie Santiago, president of the Rochester Firefighter’s Association, said the ambulance was attending to another patient at the same time the firefighter needed attention.
“The minute they started working on that other person, another one should have been dispatched,” he said. “About 90% of our firefighters are EMTs, but there’s only so much equipment that we have that we can do. We can’t transport.”
The firefighter is recovering and no other injuries were reported.