FLUSHING, Queens (WABC) — A Queens family is demanding answers after a 14-year-old boy who was suffering a stroke waited about an hour for emergency medical assistance despite multiple 911 calls.
Kevin Daly, a sophomore at St. Francis Prep suddenly became dizzy while at school in late September.
“I went up the stairs and felt dizzy. I couldn’t walk straight. I had to hold the wall,” he said.
Kevin said he also began experiencing double vision and went to see the school nurse. While he did not know what was happening, his two older sisters, who also attend the school, immediately suspected he was having a stroke.
Just two weeks earlier, Kevin had appeared to be a healthy and active athlete, according to his family.
Kevin’s father, Brian Daly said he recognized the seriousness of the situation when he called 911.
“I told them I was a retired fireman and everything. I said you gotta get there right now,” said Brian.
According to the family, multiple 911 calls were made, but no EMTs arrived. After waiting about an hour, Kevin’s parents decided they could not wait any longer and drove him to New York-Presbyterian Queens in Flushing, about three miles from his school.
Doctors there diagnosed Kevin with a rare stroke. He was later transferred to New York-Presbyterian’s medical center in Washington Heights, where he was treated for several days.
The case comes as a new report from the New York City comptroller found ambulance response times have increased significantly. According to the report, life-threatening emergency response times have risen by 41% over the past decade, increasing by nearly four minutes.
In a statement, the FDNY said it is hiring EMTs as quickly as training capacity allows.
“We know this is unacceptable and we are working tirelessly to reverse this trend.”
Addressing Kevin’s case specifically, an FDNY spokesperson said:
“Our thoughts are with this student and his family, and we hope for his full recovery. We are conducting a thorough investigation into the 911 response at St.Francis Prep, including how the calls were handled, classified and dispatched, to determine what caused the delay and what operational changes are needed to prevent something like this from happening again. New Yorkers deserve timely, reliable emergency care, and we are committed to doing everything we can to fulfill the FDNY’s lifesaving mission.”
Kevin continues to recover from the stroke and is expected to eventually make a full recovery.”
“My left eye is delayed kind of,” he says.
“It could’ve been so much worse. I mean with a stroke every second counts,” his father added.
As the family awaits the results of the FDNY investigation, Brian said he wants to know why help took so long to arrive and that someone should have an answer for what happened.
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