4 Pa. Paramedics Suspended, 1 To Be Fired After Snowstorm Death

PITTSBURGH --

Four Pittsburgh paramedics were suspended Tuesday without pay, even though an investigation found that they did not violate any state emergency laws before a Hazelwood man died amid a 20-inch snowfall on Feb. 5 and 6.

The situation became heated when more than 20 paramedics went into City Council chambers to speak up for crew chief Kim Long and district chiefs Norman Auvil and Ron Curry -- each of whom got three days out -- and acting crew chief Josie Diamond, who is off for five days pending termination.

Video - Watch Jon Greiner's Report; Hear The 911 Call

A mayoral spokeswoman told WTAE Channel 4 Action News that Long is facing a second suspension for another incident on Feb. 8 in which a woman had to walk to an ambulance during a snowstorm.

Fraternal Association of Professional Paramedics President Tony Weinmann with WTAE Channel 4 Action News Reporter Tara Edwards

"Two studies exonerated the paramedics. The wife of Curtis Mitchell herself thinks the paramedics are being scapegoated," said paramedic Megan Hart.

At a separate news conference, Mayor Luke Ravenstahl and Public Safety Director Michael Huss announced the suspensions and allowed reporters to hear tapes that were part of the city's internal investigation of Curtis Mitchell's death.

On one tape, a paramedic is heard calling the home of Mitchell and Sharon Edge and saying, "Hello, I'm calling from the 911 center. He is going to have to wait. He should have went up there when they were up there the first time. He couldn't walk up to where they were. He's not going to be able to do it again. I mean, it is really bad out here. He should have tried to do something."

Records show 10 calls were placed to 911 since 2 a.m. on Feb. 6, and ambulances were unable to access the snow-covered street where Mitchell lived until after 8 a.m. on Feb. 7, when he was already dead.

On another tape, two of the paramedics are heard talking to each other on the radio: "We can't get over the bridge. That's right. Oh well, he'll be fine. He'll go back to sleep. Uh huh, and if he's not, we did the best we could do. We can't get over the bridge. That's right. You get over there, you get stuck, and you wouldn't get out. ... He can walk there. (Unintelligible word.) I don't know -- everybody's crazy."

"What y'all did at that guy's house?" Long said.

"Yeah, but he wasn't (expletive) coming down, and I ain't waiting all day for him, Kim," Diamond said. "What the (expletive)? This ain't no cab service."

"It just lacks such compassion," Huss said at the news conference. "It was disturbing to me when I heard it, and I know when the mayor heard it, it was disturbing to him."

Mitchell died on the morning of Sunday, Feb. 7, after a near-record snow total was dumped on the city by a storm that began on the evening of Feb. 5. Edge, his longtime partner, said they called 911 when Mitchell started having abdominal pains and was unable to walk.

"You know, the wheels on that stretcher are very small. There's over a foot of snow out there," a paramedic tells Edge on the taped call. "... He would have to be able to get up and try to walk. I mean, he gets up to go to the bathroom, correct? Yes. OK, so you know what I mean? You got to meet them halfway on a day like today."

Paramedics who went to City Council Tuesday said the focus should be on the city's emergency response system and not on the paramedics themselves. They rallied around their punished brothers and sisters and were angry with Huss for basically calling them lazy.

"Suggesting that we would rather let Curtis Mitchell die then get our feet cold and wet -- well, I was crew chief on that last call when Curtis Mitchell was still presumed to be alive," paramedic Andy Marcino said. "We found a scene safety nightmare, complete with hip-deep snow, fallen power lines at chest level and an unprecedented degree of darkness."