By EMS1 Staff
TAMPA, Fla. — Officials are calling for upgrades after it was revealed that the city’s aging ambulance fleet is the source of delayed response times.
An ABC Action News investigation revealed that a Tampa Fire Rescue ambulance broke down and it took nearly an hour to transport a patient to the hospital, who later died.
The investigation later found that the ambulance was nine years old, had 229,000 miles and had been in the shop for repairs 16 times in the last two years.
It was also revealed that the average Tampa Fire Rescue ambulance age is 9 years, which is the twice the age of ambulances in surrounding counties.
“Life and death depend on it. You can’t have them breaking down,” Hillsborough County Commissioner Ed Turanchik said.
Turanchik is one of four mayoral candidates, who are all demanding upgrades to the ambulance fleet.
“There’s no question that we need to upgrade our fleet,” Tampa City Council member Harry Cohen said.
Councilman Mike Suarez agreed.
“The process itself is not working. This story indicates that,” he said.