FDNY Response Times on the Rise, Says Mayor Adams

Mayor Eric Adams reported that FDNY ambulance and fire company response times have notably increased once more in the past year, according to recent statistics.

The latest data indicates that response times rose by 22 seconds compared to the previous year, which had already seen a similar increase of 22 seconds.

“This trend has been fairly consistent over the last four fiscal years,” the fire department noted.

Specifically, the time for ambulances to reach life-threatening medical emergencies increased from 10 minutes 52 seconds to 11 minutes 21 seconds—a 4% rise. For context, this was markedly lower in 2021 when the response time averaged 9 minutes and 34 seconds.

Meanwhile, fire companies took five seconds longer to respond, moving from 9 minutes 37 seconds in 2024 to 9 minutes 42 seconds last year, which is an increase from 8 minutes and 29 seconds since 2021.

The fiscal year runs from July 1 to June 30.

On a somewhat positive note, ambulance turnaround times in hospitals improved slightly, decreasing by 10 seconds from 40 minutes 50 seconds to 40 minutes 40 seconds.

In contrasting trends, the number of critical care patients receiving advanced life support shot up from 117,269 in 2024 to 133,789 in 2025.

The fire department explained, “Emergency life-saving interventions provided by EMS include administering medication for asthma, epinephrine for allergic reactions, and transporting stroke or heart attack patients to specialized centers.”

Interestingly, the average number of hours that ambulances were in service dropped by 3%. Additionally, there was a decline in reported life-threatening emergencies, from 633,361 in 2024 to 620,467 in 2025, which ended on June 30.

Unions representing EMTs and emergency services have criticized staffing shortages, attributed to low wages, as a contributing factor to the troubling rise in response times.

“It’s no surprise to us FDNY EMTs and paramedics that ambulance response times are increasing everywhere. This is becoming a widespread issue for the world’s busiest first-response medical agency,” one union representative remarked.

He pointed out an alarming staff attrition rate of 70%.

City officials, along with the FDNY, indicated they are actively working to mitigate the longer response times.

“Increased emergency response times result from several factors outside our control, such as significant traffic congestion and rising call volumes. However, we are focused on improving coordination with hospitals, boosting efficiencies across various localities, and leveraging telehealth to streamline care,” they stated.