FDNY Crew Got Lost En Route to Call

May 10, 2010
A Queens man died from lack of oxygen as confused firefighters circled his house for 37 minutes because they couldn't find the address on their outdated map, The Post has learned.Tom Gallagher, 69, a retired stationary engineer for Fordham University, was in his bedroom at his Little Neck home on Van Nostrand Court just after 10 p.m. Monday when he lost consciousness, his distraught family said.While his son tried to revive him, firefighters rushing to his aid drove by his cul de sac several times without spotting the entrance.

A Queens man died from lack of oxygen as confused firefighters circled his house for 37 minutes because they couldn't find the address on their outdated map, The Post has learned.

Tom Gallagher, 69, a retired stationary engineer for Fordham University, was in his bedroom at his Little Neck home on Van Nostrand Court just after 10 p.m. Monday when he lost consciousness, his distraught family said.

While his son tried to revive him, firefighters rushing to his aid drove by his cul de sac several times without spotting the entrance.

Their rig was not equipped with GPS or electronic maps -- which are not installed in any FDNY or EMS vehicles.

Instead, they relied on a 2005 Hagstrom map they keep on their dashboard.

Gallagher's family -- which includes a retired fire chief brother and a retired firefighter nephew -- called 911 at 10:21 p.m. to report a heart attack.

With the nearest ambulance five miles away in Flushing, the FDNY dispatcher alerted Engine Co. 313, located eight blocks from Gallagher's house, straight down Northern Boulevard. Inside the firehouse, a wall map has Van Nostrand Court added in black magic marker.

Engine 313 drove back and forth for several minutes along West End Avenue, which offers access to Van Nostrand Court, witnesses said.

At one point, they took off for a similar address in Van Nostrand Place in Douglaston before doubling back to Little Neck. They showed up 37 minutes after the call was placed.

Gallagher's family was later stunned to learn he had died from lack of oxygen, not a heart attack.

"The doctor said there were no enzymes in the blood indicating a heart attack, no swelling of the head indicating an injury or aneurysm," said his daughter Maura Gallagher, 42.

An ambulance from Flushing Hospital arrived at the house 12 minutes after their emergency call -- six minutes too late to avert brain death. The medics also appeared to be lost, the family said.

Gallagher's wife, Mary, said she had to run to Little Neck Parkway, to flag down the ambulance.

"I don't blame the firefighters for this. They do a lot of brave things, and I respect them," she said. "It was unfortunate the FDNY couldn't find us. Van Nostrand Court needs to be put on a map."

The FDNY said instructions on Van Nostrand Court, a no-car lane dotted with about 30 homes, were being added to the department database.

"We are working right now to make certain there are additional instructions within Fire and EMS systems, so in any future cases, they all have the information to quickly locate this unmarked street," spokesman Steve Ritea said.

The city has no plans to install electronic mapping in fire or EMS rigs, the FDNY said.

Republished with permission of The New York Post.

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