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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
PR- 389-06
November 8, 2006

MAYOR BLOOMBERG AND FIRE COMMISSIONER SCOPPETTA OPEN NEW EMS STATION IN CARROLL GARDENS BROOKLYN

State-of-the Art Facility Will Improve Quality of Life in Surrounding Communities by Bringing EMS Resources Including Equipment and Personnel Closer to the Residents They Serve

Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, Fire Commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta and Department of Design and Construction (DDC) Commissioner David J. Burney, AIA, today cut the ribbon to officially open EMS Station 32, a newly constructed facility in the Carroll Gardens section of Brooklyn. Located at 347 Bond Street, the 8,150 square-foot state-of-the-art EMS Station will accommodate up to seven vehicles and provide FDNY ambulance crews who serve the area critical medical supplies and equipment. Converted from a one-story warehouse built in 1917, the station will serve the Brooklyn communities of Carroll Gardens, Cobble Hill and Brooklyn Heights. DDC created the master design plans for the project and oversaw construction at the site. The EMS station was built in 15 months at a cost of $4.7 million. Mayor Bloomberg also was joined by FDNY Chief of Department Salvatore J. Cassano and Chief of EMS Command John Peruggia for today's ribbon-cutting ceremony.

"This EMS station is another example of the City's commitment to investing in the long-term health and safety of all New Yorkers," said Mayor Bloomberg. "This new facility will help ensure that our Paramedics and EMTs get the medical resources they need quickly, so that they can get back on the streets and get back to the business of savings lives."

"The Fire Department is committed to ensuring the Emergency Medical Service has the most advanced tools and equipment available - from personal gear that protects against chemical substances and other harmful agents to the Automatic Vehicle Location system that coordinates resources more efficiently than ever," said Commissioner Scoppetta. "This new station reinforces our dedication to providing New Yorkers with the best pre-hospital emergency medical service in the country."

Since the 1996 merger of the Fire Department and EMS, the number of EMS facilities constructed by the City has nearly doubled, with five stations having been built and opened in the past five years alone. There are currently 30 EMS stations and two outposts located throughout the five boroughs. Prior to the opening of the new station in Carroll Gardens, this area of Brooklyn was serviced by units from EMS Station 31 at Cumberland Diagnostic & Treatment Center in Downtown Brooklyn. EMS Station 32 is currently the largest standalone EMS facility that has been constructed since the merger.

Located on an 18,000 square-foot lot, the new facility can accommodate up to six ambulances and one conditions supervisor vehicle. There is outdoor off-street parking for all members and an outdoor fueling station with an underground 2,500-gallon fuel tank that will feed an emergency generator.

The interior space also includes offices for a Captain and Lieutenant, kitchen/dining room, conference room, fitness room, Advance Life Support and Basic Life Support supply rooms, a break area, storage for oxygen tanks and vehicle fluids and locker facilities and bathrooms for 100 employees. 

The station will act as a hub for four emergency medical units initially, including three Basic Life Support ambulances and one Advanced Life Support ambulance. Crews can restock their ambulances with life-saving medical supplies such as oxygen and medications to treat asthma, seizures and cardiac conditions. The station houses a Resource Coordination Center that can oversee citywide EMS activity as a critical backup to the Fire Department Operations Center and a separate decontamination area where medics can safely clean and disinfect clothing and medical supplies.

"Providing emergency medical services in each borough is vital to the health of New York City," said Commissioner Burney. "Throughout the past five years, DDC has worked with the Fire Department on five EMS stations - each one focused on safe, efficient, and comfortable operation as well as reducing rapid response time and providing outstanding pre-hospital and trauma services. The newly reconstructed Bond Street EMS Station, coupled with the high standards and dedication of the Fire Department, strengthens this focus by better serving the surrounding community and greatly improving the working environment for New York's emergency responders."

The project was managed by DDC. The architectural firm of Beyan Karahan and Associates designed the facility and the LiRO Group provided construction management.

FDNY Technology Upgrades

In April, Mayor Bloomberg and Fire Commissioner Scoppetta announced the launch of the Automatic Vehicle Location (AVL) system which utilizes Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) technology to track the real-time movements of every ambulance in the 911 system - helping dispatchers more accurately deploy emergency resources. AVL is a powerful tool that creates a visual map of where resources are located and their movements. Using a constellation of 24 satellites orbiting the earth, the AVL system combines GPS technology and street-level mapping to pinpoint the longitude, latitude and course direction of any equipped vehicle. In the near future, all fire vehicles will be monitored in similar fashion. Citywide average EMS response times to the most life-threatening calls (Segments 1 - 3) between August 1 and October 28 have decreased 25 seconds when compared to a three-year average of the same period in 2002, 2003 and 2004.

In September, Mayor Bloomberg also unveiled the newly rebuilt Fire Department Operations Center (FDOC). The $17 million, state-of-the-art center serves as the central command and information hub for the FDNY. Located at FDNY Headquarters in Downtown Brooklyn, the FDOC is staffed by uniformed personnel who monitor fire and EMS activity across the city, 24-hours a day, seven days a week. Technology upgrades in the FDOC allow the FDNY to increase its interoperability with other City agencies including the Police Department, Office of Emergency Management and Department of Transportation and allow senior fire commanders the ability to management multiple, large scale incidents across the City from a single, central remote location. The FDOC provided critical and timely information during recent emergencies in Manhattan such as the plane crash on October 11 and the building explosion on July 10.







MEDIA CONTACT:


Stu Loeser/Virginia Lam   (212) 788-2958

Francis X. Gribbon   (Fire Department)
(718) 999-2025

Matt Monahan   (Design and Construction)
(718) 391-1641




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