Virtual Museum EMS History

    Citywide/Staten Island Dispatch(foreground) and Brooklyn Dispatch(background)

     In 1975, 911 calls were answered by NYPD Communications- 1 Police Plaza, which then conferenced the call with the Ambulance Receiving Operator at The NYC*EMS Communications Bureau housed in the penthouse at 377 Broadway, Manhattan for further caller interview and dispatch.

      The job was written by the Ambulance Receiving Operator onto a card and then sent down a conveyor belt to the appropriate borough dispatch board, where it was  time stamped and dispatched. The card was placed into the slot for the assigned unit, and the colored buttons above allowed the dispatcher to track the units status.

Similar consoles for Manhattan, Brooklyn, Bronx and Citywide allowed ambulances to be dispatched initially on 2 VHF radio frequencies (Manhattan-Bronx; Brooklyn-Queens; Staten Island buses were on the NYPD Staten Island frequency). Initiation of a new UHF network in 1976 allowed decompression,  with each borough having its own UHF frequency.

Photos courtesy www.SteveSpak.com

Keywords: NYC EMS, New York City EMS, FDNY EMS

External Resource Link: The Coney Island Ambulance Station

Last Revision Date: 4/15/07 - 8:09 AM