The vaccine mandate and a cut in funding in Seattle have led to massive staffing shortages that have cost lives.
The mandate took 100 officers off the streets in Seattle in October, leaving the police department with less than 1,000 active-duty officers. Coupled with a cut in funding for emergency services as a result of the defund-the-police movement, the crisis has led to at least one preventable death.
Last week, the Seattle fire department received a 911 call from a 13-year-old boy at 1:24 p.m. who said his father was experiencing a “medical emergency.”
By 1:26, a unit was dispatched to the address — but not a medic. Two firefighters were sent to the address that had an outdated “cautionary note” for the apartment. A former occupant had made threats to first responders.
The firefighters were instructed to wait for a police patrol to arrive because of the cautionary note. Vital minutes passed as the young man called 911 twice more worried that his father was getting worse.
Finally, disobeying procedure, the firefighters entered the house at 1:39 p.m. They started CPR immediately. Four additional firefighters showed up a minute later. But it wasn’t until 1:45 p.m. that the police and medics arrived on the scene. They worked on the man for an hour but couldn’t save him.
One medic explained that “had it been addressed early, his chance of survival would have been 60%.”
The medic believes it was a ventricular fibrillation arrest based on details from the case and noted “it’s very save-able,” so long as it’s treated quickly. Indeed, Public Health of Seattle & King County notes a 67% survival rate if Seattle first responders get to the patient before the cardiac arrest. It’s just 21% if they arrive after. It’s unclear when the father went into cardiac arrest.
The medic says that this specific heart issue explains why the resuscitation efforts were attempted at the residence, instead of at a hospital. This process is normal, the medic says.
The vaccine mandate in Seattle is leading to a shortage of first responders. And our new staffing crisis likely contributed to a man's death — in front of his 13-year-old son. It's a tragic story. I break it down on Tucker Carlson Tonight.
Full story: https://t.co/8VuP9zd99X pic.twitter.com/h43WA9sCEL
— Jason Rantz on KTTH Radio (@jasonrantz) November 13, 2021
The staffing crisis played a critical role in the death of the young man’s father. But it’s more than the vaccine mandate keeping first responders home. The shortfall could have easily been compensated for.
Related: Is the Tide Turning Against Vaccine Mandates?
It was the mandate on top of the record number of police retirements because of the riots and record number of homicides and the low morale due in large part to city leaders failing to stand behind the police.
Even with the address warning as potentially dangerous, short of a major citywide emergency, officers would have been able to respond relatively quickly with normal staffing.
Similarly, Seattle Fire had staffing problems before the vaccine mandate. But afterward, they’ve been forced to turn units offline in staggering numbers.
Seattle City Council members proposed nearly $11 million in Seattle Police Department cuts, including cuts in hiring incentives. And the mayor did not have to order officers who didn’t get vaccinated to go on leave. The mayor should be asking, what’s the greater health crisis? Fewer police officers or the coronavirus?
We’ll never know if the additional seven minutes lost because of mandates and cuts would have made a difference for the young man’s father. We’ll never know how many other Seattle residents have lost their lives because of the same reasons.
We only know that it doesn’t have to happen. Politics killed this young man’s father. And the people purveying the policies that contributed to the father’s death should remember that.
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