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Bill de BlasioPublic AdvocateCity of New York
Brad LanderNYC Council MemberDistrict 39
ELECTED OFFICIALS, COMMUNITY LEADERS AND FIREFIGHTERSRALLY TO
SAVE ENGINE COMPANY 220 IN PARK SLOPE
~Lander, de Blasio, Markowitz, Crowley join residents and
firefighters to save vital fire
company from Mayors budget axe
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE May 25, 2011Contact: Wiley Norvell
212-669-4813/646-422-9614
Rachel Goodman 718 499 1090/646 319 8665
Brooklyn, NYCouncilmember Brad Lander, Public Advocate Bill de
Blasio, Borough
President Marty Markowitz and Councilmember Elizabeth Crowley
joined Park Slopeand Windsor Terrace residents today to rally
against the closure of Engine Company 220,at 530 11
thStreet in Park Slope. They were joined by Uniformed
Firefighters Association
President Steve Cassidy, Uniformed Fire Officers President Al
Hagan, and firefightersfrom Engine 220. The rally took place eight
years to the day since six firehouses wereshuttered in 2003,
including four in Brooklyn.
Engine 220 is one of 20 fire companies around the City, and one
of eight in Brooklyn, tobe proposed for closure in Mayor Bloombergs
Executive Budget. If the BloombergAdministration is allowed to
proceed with this closure, response times at fires willincrease
dramatically for Park Slope and Windsor Terrace residents.
Communities served
by Engine 220 will see response times for the first engine rise
19% from 3:38 to 4:08, andarrival of the second enginenecessary to
get water on the firewould rise 30% from4:08 to 5:24. Across the
city, 18 of the 20 affected communities would exceed the 4-minute
standard for initial response set by the National Fire Protection
Association,according to a study released by Public Advocate de
Blasio.
An extra minute to get an engine company to a fire can be the
difference between life
and death. said Councilmember Brad Lander. Mayor Bloomberg has
his priorities inall the wrong places. He wants to close 20 fire
companies to save $55 million, but theCity's 'rainy day' fund has
$1.9 billion on reserve. Instead of supporting tax breaks
formillionaires, or increasing City spending on consultants, the
mayor should focus first on
keeping our communities safe.
Ask any New Yorker what they would prioritize in this budget,
and the fire company in
their neighborhood would top the list. Engine 220 has protected
my family for 20 yearsand there is no one in the world who can
convince our community that well be just as
safe without these firefighters down the block, said Public
Advocate Bill de Blasio,
who was arrested in an act of civil disobedience on May 25, 2003
to prevent the closureof Engine 204 in Cobble Hill. Providing
public safety is the most basic responsibility of
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government, and well fight alongside neighborhoods across the
city to keep these
companies in action.
I am flabbergasted that eight engine and laddercompaniesnearly
half of the 20proposed closures citywideare in Brooklyn, said
Borough President Marty
Markowitz.If there is any serious thought being given to closing
these houses, it needsto be extinguished like a three-alarm fire.
Just in the last two weeks, Engine 284 in DykerHeightsone of the
companies on the hit listassisted with an area fire and their
quickresponse no doubt saved lives. I know we are experiencing
challenging economic times,but the truth is, in Brooklyn we need
the FDNY now more than ever. Brooklyn isgrowing by leaps and
bounds, which means that in the coming years there will be an
evergreater need for New Yorks Bravest. It is our collective
responsibility to ensure
maximum safety for all of our residentsand that means no
firehouse closings!
Council Member Elizabeth Crowley (D-30, Queens), Chair of the
Fire & CriminalJustice Committee stated: The Mayor says we
can't have a fire company on every corner
but we just want our local ones to stay open. Closing even one
fire company will impactresponse times throughout the Cityclosing
eight companies in Brooklyn alone isirresponsible, dangerous and
life-threatening.
Fire fighters save lives, said Assemblymember Jim Brennan. It is
basically thatsimple. Eliminating Engine 220 increases the response
time in the event of fires andemergencies. It increases the risk to
community residents.
Mike Bloomberg has touched the lives of all New Yorkers in a
real and dangerous way,said UFA President Steve Cassidy. The
American Heart Association says medicalattention following a
cardiac event must arrive in six - eight minutes. Closing 20
firecompanies will increase response times to patient contact
dramatically. Responses tofires, which the city already admits to
misleading the public about, will increase byseveral minutes. The
Bloomberg Administration is abdicating its responsibility to
protectour city and its citizens. New Yorkers must demand their
elected officials fight for thefire companies that protect their
familys safety.
For the Bloomberg administration to close any more firehouses is
a dangerous game ofRussian Roulette. But instead of playing with
their own lives, the Mayors office is
playing with the lives of every man, woman and child in this
city and that is civicinsanity, said UFOA President Al Hagan.
First-grade students from nearby PS 107, who have been studying
the importance of thefirehouse to the community, also joined the
rally.
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