Motorcycles Answer 911 Calls in Miami-Dade

[WAS967 97]

Motorcycles Answer 911 Calls in Miami-Dade

By CORALIE CARLSON

The Associated Press

MIAMI -- With sirens blaring and lights flashing, Lt. Roman Bas and

firefighter Charley Hay raced through the snarling midday traffic on

souped-up BMW motorcycles to answer a 911 call.

Before a fire truck arrived at the scene, the pair had evaluated the

victim's condition and fitted him with a neck brace. They also determined

the man -- who suffered a head injury in a fall from a second-story roof --

needed to be flown by helicopter to Jackson Memorial Hospital.

And that was just their first day.

Miami-Dade Fire Rescue started using motorcycles this week to respond to

emergency calls. The department is thought to be the first in a major U.S.

metropolitan area to do so. Emergency responders on motorcycles -common in

Europe and Asia -are deployed in some smaller U.S. cities.

Officials here hope the Motorcycle Emergency Response Team will cut response

times for 911 calls by allowing fire-rescue workers to slip through Miami's

notorious traffic -- among the nation's most congested. The average response

time in some of the most congested areas is about 15 minutes. And in rush

hour, it can take even longer.

"Once traffic gets so backed up, it doesn't matter how loud your siren is,"

said David Alonso, a training coordinator for the motorcycle team. "There's

nowhere to go."

The county aims for a response time of six to eight minutes, said Bas, who

leads the motorcycle program. Bas and Alonso hope medical responders on

motorcycles could achieve the success seen in London. That city has used

motorcycles since 1987. Response times with the bikes average 3.5 minutes,

they said.

Bas and Hay took four minutes to reach the victim who had fallen from the

roof. Such success could persuade the county to keep the bikes beyond the

yearlong, $170,000 pilot program.

The Miami-Dade department uses 10 motorcycles donated by BMW. Each is fitted

with three compartments to hold external defibrillators, oxygen, IVs,

cervical collars and other equipment. A pair of bikes carries all the basic

life support supplies except for a backboard, Alonso said.

The department trained 10 firefighters on the motorcycles for the first

year. Eager to ride, another four used their own money and time to take the

$1,300, 80-hour training over two weeks.

Starting Monday, two pairs of firefighters patrolled the county's major

roads -- reminiscent of the late 1970s TV show "Chips" -each weekday from

6:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.

The bikes surprised some residents, such as Ron Thomas, who was waiting for

an ambulance to arrive for his pregnant wife after they were in a minor car

crash. Instead, Bas and Hay rolled up in radio-fitted helmets and blue

jumpsuits.

"It was prompt service," Thomas said. "I'd never seen it before."

[BFD1054 1,552]

WAS967, this was another cool site i found dealing with Miami-Dade FR using motorcycles, even has a picture! I also believe there was an article on this topic in Firehouse Magazine a few months back, but i was unable to find it. It seems like a very interesting idea, i'm curious to see how well it will work for them. :-k I'm sure the insurance must be outrageous, i would hope they get a break lol!

http://www.americanmotor.com/news.cfm?newsid=2119