Man dies at JFK after security delays EMTs
 

"A 50-year-old man died of a heart attack at John F. Kennedy International Airport on Monday because emergency responders were stuck behind secure doors and unable to open them with their ID cards."


http://rt.com/usa/jfk-security-heart-attack-228/

How on earth did it take 40 minutes for help to arrive, forgetting the SIDA entry issues?

Sounds like some serious issues beyond access control!

How horrible! I don't know why it would have taken that long for responders - shouldn't they just have gone through security to get to the man? Also, aren't there agents around who know CPR? I am sure there is more to this story than what is in the article.

And of course the company said they didn't do anything wrong. . .:rolleyes:

It's New York, their response times are horrible. They are really stretched because of the heat and if there was not another delay of a half hour for an ambulance all over the press on Monday this probably would have gotten more traction as a story.

Why didn't they just go to the front door and through the security lane?

It also seems like way more than CPR was needed

Emergency medical responders from the Port Authority dispatch were eventually able to enter the building through another route, but they were delayed by two minutes. The PAPD EMTs lacked the required medical equipment and training to help the victim

This makes no sense whatsoever. I find it hard to believe EMT's at the airport are not equipped with defribilators and trained on how to use them as well as CPR. Heck airplanes have them on board.

The PAPD EMTs lacked the required medical equipment and training to help the victim, but the FDNY team was still stuck outside.

What's more puzzling is that there wasn't an AED anywhere and/or no one knew CPR?

I was lucky enough to receive mandatory AED and CPR training at my (public) high school (was part of our "gym" class w/ our local red cross) but AEDs are designed for anyone to use.

While probably true, CPR/compressions until a first responder arrives gives the person a better chance at survival than doing nothing at all.

I'm curious as to why FDNY did not try to break down the door(s), this is life we are talking about. :confused:

OK, if break the story down

911 call at about 6:30
Port Authority dispatches ambulance about a minute later
It arrives at the terminal two minutes later
They are delayed for two more minutes at the elevator, then go in through another door

The Medical One rescuers are only EMTs, however, and the plan was for an FDNY crew of better-equipped and better-trained paramedics to arrive and take over.

At 7:10, some 40 or so minutes after the first call, the Fire Department Ambulance arrives and the Port Authority Police with them can not get them in and a decision is made to bring the victim down to them.

While the delay in getting in makes for a good story, if the times reported by the post are accurate, and the EMT's were unable to do what was needed for the victim (probably ALS), and it took the paramedics 40 minutes to get there, he probably never had a chance, locked doors or not.

CPR by the way was started immediately

A spokesperson from Port Authority said that technically, there was no delay when it came to administering aid to Adekunle, since a customs official present for the incident began performing CPR immediately after the heart attack occurred.

Odd that the airport does not have terminal first responders with AED's, O2 and other EMT supported/approved treatment tools.

JFK...a large international airport with hundreds of thousands of people pass thru each day, wow

agree that this man may not have made it even if there were no delay in opening the door. However, the question is why wasn't their key card working? Whatever the issue is needs to be fixed immediately. It's just a matter of time they get another call in which two minutes delay could mean life or death.

Ahhh... that makes more sense. that original article was skimpy on details and made it seem worse than it was although loss of life is never good.

Being economical with the facts in order to present the story is a certain light and make it seem worse than it was was likely the goal of whomever penned the piece, though that's just my jaded humble opinion.

So what good are EMTs?

At no point did I ever say that EMT's were not any good, just to be clear. The quote was from news stories about the incident.

Given the arrival time of 6:30am, and this statement above (with reference to a "customs official"), I will make the assumption that the passenger involved had just arrived off an international flight, and the episode occurred in the sterile international arrivals area.

Those of you who travel internationally know that when you step off a nonstop international flight (without Preclearance), you enter a sterile concourse as you walk to the FIS (Federal Inspection Services) area. Access to this sterile concourse is extremely restricted by DHS and local authorities, because arriving travelers are not supposed to come into contact with individuals inside the USA until they have been processed, inspected, and legally admitted to the country.

You cannot just "go through security" to gain access to this area...rather, you must pass through a series of checkpoints and/or alarmed doors, and virtually everybody (who is not arriving on a flight) must be escorted by an official who has been cleared by CBP to have access to the area.

Let's just say that if I were going to have a medical issue, the sterile international arrivals area is just about the worst place to have it! I feel for the victim's family.