New York City Ambulance Calls Increase Due to COVID-19

Among the callers there are many people aged about 20-30 years. The situation is similar to that observed at the peak of the pandemic in New York. The edition writes about it New York Post.

The rise in the number of COVID-19 patients with severe illness is reminiscent of the first outbreak of the pandemic in New York this spring. “We are seeing more and more young people complaining of fever, coughing and shortness of breath,” said a paramedic at the FDNY Emergency Medical Service, located in East New York City in Brooklyn.

Recently, he continued, a patient in an ambulance died from cardiac arrest as a result of COVID-19 infection, which was common during the peak of the pandemic in March and April.

There are many young people today among the patients who complain of cough and fever. "Some of them are under 20 years old, others a little over 30 years old," said a paramedic who asked to remain anonymous.

As for ethnic groups, among the patients there are completely different people - both blacks and Hispanics. Therefore, the new outbreak of COVID-19 in New York does not apply exclusively to the ultra-Orthodox Jewish community.

Many of the hot spots are home to Orthodox Jewish communities. Their representatives say they feel like scapegoats due to the rise in new cases of COVID-19.

On the subject: Jews in New York are wearing masks to protest new quarantine rules

The problem is that many people don't adhere to safety rules. “There are people who gather in groups and do not wear masks. They don't practice social distancing. All it takes to spread the virus is just one person, ”said the paramedic.

Oren Barzilay, head of local union 2507 EMS, also said that "some brigades in Brooklyn are again receiving calls from people with fever or coughs."

Meanwhile, the city's health department last week reported "a slight increase in emergency room visits across the city with COVID-19 and similar illnesses."

The number of patients with coronavirus in public and private hospitals in the city increased from an average of 23 during the first week of September to 30 during the first week of October.

Spokesperson for Mt. Sinai also said that "recently, hospitals in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens have seen a small but noticeable increase in the number of patients with COVID-19." “Until recently, this increase was observed in small regions that are publicly defined by the city and state. We are working closely with the New York City Department of Health to monitor this situation, ”he said.

A spokesman for Maimonides Hospital, located in Brooklyn's Park Borough, confirmed that "there is an increase in the number of patients with COVID-19."

Borough Park is among the nine red zone neighborhoods in New York City where coronavirus test positive rates exceed 3% for seven consecutive days. High levels of coronavirus infection prompted authorities to close schools and some businesses, as well as restrict restaurants.

On the subject: New York tightens quarantine in COVID-19 hot spots: not everyone is happy

However, FDNY spokesman Frank Dwyer said the number of 911 medical calls across the city has been declining for several months. On Sunday, October 11, FDNY-EMS received 3403 calls.

Before the outbreak of the pandemic, EMS handled around 4000 to 4100 medical calls, while at the peak of the pandemic in late March, it handled 6500 such calls.