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>> >>PEGGY PICO: VOICE OF SAN DIEGO PUBLISHED AN INVESTIGATIVE REPORT DOCUMENTING DELAYS
AND THE AMOUNT OF TIME IT TAKES FIRST RESPONDERS TO ARRIVE AT A LIFE THREATENING EMERGENCY
AFTER A 911 CALL. THE RESULTS WERE DISTURBING.
HERE TO EXPLAIN IS JOURNALIST LIAM DILLON, AND SAN DIEGO FIRE CHIEF BRIAN FENNESSY.
WHEN DOES THE CLOCK ACTUALLY START? >> >>LIAM DILLON: BH THEY FIRST GET THE CALL
AND THE POLICE DEPARTMENT GETS THE CALL, THEY GET THE CALL TRANSFERRED, WHEN THE DEPARTMENT
GETS ON SCENE. THERE COULD BE A DELAY FROM WHEN SOMEONE ACTUALLY
GETS TO YOU. IT'S REALLY A SNAP SHOT IN TIME, NOT REAL
CAPTURING THE ENTIRE THING. >> >>PEGGY PICO: THE FREEWAYS, IF IT'S A 10STORY
BUILDING, WHATEVER. CHIEF FENNESSY, I WANTED TO ASK YOU, WHAT
IS THE GOAL, FOR ARRIVING AT HIGH PRIORITY EMERGENCIES.
>> >>BRIAN FENNESSY: OUR GOAL IS FROM THE TIME OF CALL PICK UP TO UNIT ARRIVAL, SEVEN
MINUTES 30 SECONDS. >> >>PEGGY PICO: HOW ARE YOU AT REACHING THAT
GOAL. >> >>BRIAN FENNESSY: RIGHT NOW OUR CURRENT
DATA IS INDICATING WE'RE REACHING THAT GOAL 65% OF THE TIME. >> >>PEGGY PICO: THE SEVEN MINUTES IS AN INCREASE
IN TIME. >> >>BRIAN FENNESSY: WE GOT A MINUTE AND 30
SECONDS DUE TO THIS KUN SILT SULT NT REPORT THAT APPEARED TO BE ACHIEVEABLE.
>> >>PEGGY PICO: A LOT OF THAT IS FOR TOPOGRAPHY AND THE CONDITIONS AROUND SAN DIEGO.
>> >>BRIAN FENNESSY: THE CITY OF SAN DIEGO IS NOT A GRIDBASED, THE STREETS ARE NOT LAID
OUT LIKE MAYBE IT WOULD BE IN KANSAS AND THE MID WEST.
>> >>PEGGY PICO: LIAM, YOUR REPORT SHOWS THE DEPARTMENT IS OFTEN NOT MEETING EVEN THIS
SEVEN AND A HALF MINUTE GOAL. HOW OFTEN DID YOU FIND THEY WERE LATE?
>> >>LIAM DILLON: FOR THE HIGHEST PRIORITY INSTANCE, CARDIAC ARREST, CHOKING, SHOOTING,
THE HIGHEST LEVEL OF INCIDENT CALLS THE FIRE DEPARTMENT GETS, THEY'VE MISSED AN AVERAGE,
LATE AN AVERAGE OF TWICE EVERY SINGLE HOUR EVERY SINGLE DAY, THAT WAS MORE THAN 37THOUSAND
TIMES. IF YOU COUNT THE LOWER PRIORITY INCIDENTS
WE'RE TALKING A RATE ALMOST DOUBLE THAT. >> >>PEGGY PICO: CITY GATE THAT WAS A CONSULTING
FIRM FOUND THAT NEIGHBORHOODS WITH THE LONGEST EMERGENCY RESPONSE DELAYS ARE WITHIN NINE
AND A HALF MILES EAST AND SOUTH OF DOWNTOWN. THEY INCLUDE CITY HEIGHTS, AROUND HOME AVENUE,
PARADISE HILLS, COLLEGE AREA, SKY LINE AND ENCANTO, CHIEF FENNESSY WHY DO THESE NEIGHBORHOODS
HAVE A PARTICULARLY LONG DELAY? >> >>BRIAN FENNESSY: HISTORICALLY VERY BUSY
RESPONSE AREAS. I SERVED AT STATION 17 FOR MANY YEARS, MANY
OF US BELIEVE THAT HAS TO DO WITH POPULATION DENSITY, A LOT OF PEOPLE LIVING IN THOSE AREAS,
WE'D HAVE TO GO BACK AND LOOK AT THE DEMOGRAPHICS, DO WE HAVE AN ELDERLY POPULATION, THE CRIME
RATES, A NUMBER OF INTERSTATES AND HIGHWAYS THAT INTERSECT. ALL OF THAT CONTRIBUTES TO
THE RESPONSE VOLUME. >> >>PEGGY PICO: LIAM, DO YOU FIND THIS IS
A LACK OF FIRE STATIONS, NEARBY CLOSE BY FIRE STATIONS IT.
>> >>LIAM DILLON: THAT'S WHAT THE CITY HAS IDENTIFIED AS THE MEANS TO FIX THIS PROBLEM
TOO, BUILD MORE FIRE STATIONS, SO THE AGREED UPON SOLUTION BY THE CITY.
THE PROBLEM IS THE CITY'S NOT VERY GOOD AT DOING THAT.
THEY COMMITTED TO BUILDING THESE FIEF FIVE NEW FIRE STATIONS BY THE MIDDLE OF 2017 AT
A COST OF 49�MILLIONDOLLARS, THEY HAVEN'T PUT A DIME TO FUNDING ANY OF THEM.
THEY JUST HAVEN'T FOLLOWED THROUGH. >> >>PEGGY PICO: CHIEF FENNESSY, WHAT DO YOU
FEEL THE SOLUTION IS? IT'S NOT SOMETHING WE CAN OBTAIN, BUILDING
THE NEW STATIONS, OR BECAUSE OF WHATEVER'S HAPPENING AT THE CITY IS THERE AN ALTERNATIVE?
>> >>BRIAN FENNESSY: CLEARLY, THE SOLUTION OF THE PROBLEM TO GET TO THAT 90% IS WE NEED
MORE FIRE FIGHTERS, AND STATIONS. ONE OF THE ITEMS IDENTIFIED�
>> >>PEGGY PICO: YOU HAVE ONE SPECIFIC� YOU HAVE AN ALTERNATIVE THAT MIGHT COST A
LITTLE LESS. >> >>BRIAN FENNESSY: WE'VE GOT 19 SERVICE
GAPS SH THAT'S WHAT THE CONSULTANT IDENTIFIED. FIRE STATIONS IN ALL 19.
WE REALIZE THAT 19 IS PROBABLY NOT GOING TO BE ACHIEVABLE IN OUR LIFETIMES.
THERE ARE SOME AREAS THAT NEED 10 FIRE STATIONS, THERE ARE SOME GAP AREAS, OR SEAM AREAS, WE
LIKE TO CALL THEM T BETWEEN THE FIRE STATIONS THAT COULD BENEFIT FROM WHAT WE'RE CALLING
A FAST RESPONSE SQUAD. A CONCEPT BROUGHT FORWARD BY THE CONSULTANT.
>> >>PEGGY PICO: A MINI TEAM THAT COULD GET THERE SOONER?
>> >>BRIAN FENNESSY: TWOPERSON, TRUCK, PARAMEDICS GET TO THE PATIENTS QUICKLY, RESPOND TO FIRES,
OPEN UP THE BUILDINGS, PREPARE FOR THE FIRSTIN ENGINE COMPANIES.
WE THINK IT MAY BE A VIABLE CONCEPT, BUT WE REALLY NEED TO PILOT THE PROGRAM TO IDENTIFY.
WE DON'T WANT THOSE TO TAKE THE PLACE OF FIRE STATIONS WE NEED FIRE STATIONS.
>> >>PEGGY PICO: I WANT TO LET FOLKS KNOW THEY CAN READ LIAM'S ENTIRE STORY AND LIPG
TO THE MAP, BY GOING TO KPBS.ORG, AND YOU CAN READ THE CITY GATE RECOMMENDATIONS IN
T AND THE FULL REPORT AS WELL. LIAM DILLON, AND BRIAN FENNESSY, THANK YOU
VERY MUCH.