The FDNY will expand a pilot program where fire trucks don’t use flashing lights or sirens and obey traffic laws when responding to certain non-emergencies.
Launched in Queens six months ago, the program will start in Brooklyn and Staten Island this week, said Fire Commissioner Salvatore Cassano.
This “modified response” program has reduced accidents involving FDNY vehicles by 32 percent since starting in Queens, Cassano said.
It won’t be used for true emergencies, like fires or life-threatening situations, the commissioner said.
Non-emergencies comprise about 300,000 of the one million jobs the FDNY handles yearly throughout the city, said the FDNY.These have almost doubled over the past 20 years.
"Firefighters who work in Brooklyn and Staten Island, along with the three million people who reside in those boroughs will soon benefit from our expansion of this new protocol into their communities," Cassano said in a statement.
"With accidents down 32 percent since we began this pilot program six months ago, fewer firefighters and civilians have been injured as a result, even though we're responding to more non-emergency calls than ever before," he said.
