A Manhattan woman died after waiting over two hours for an ambulance to reach her during the blizzard of 2010, her family charges in a new lawsuit.
Kathleen Thomas slipped on the snow outside of her Lower East Side apartment at around 2 am on Dec. 27, and “suffered cardiac arrest,” the Manhattan Supreme Court suit says.
Family members rushed to help her and called for help. “The 911 operator told them that medical assistance would get there as soon as possible,” the suit says.
“Based on that representation, Ms. Thomas’ family members stayed put and awaited the arrival of medical assistance, which they were led to believe would arrive within minutes,” the suit says, noting that EMS didn’t show up until 4:30, at which point it was too late.
Thomas “was declared dead at the scene and taken directly to the morgue,” the suit says.
The suit blames the delay on “the unplowed and impassable conditions of the city’s streets” in the wake of the monster storm, and points the finger at the mayor and the heads of several city agencies, including the NYPD and Sanitation Department for having botched the job.
“But for the defendants’ careless and negligent conduct, [Thomas] would still be alive,” says the suit, which seeks unspecified money damages.
A spokeswoman for the city Law Department said they’ll “evaluate the complaint” when they receive it.