29 November 2023
WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — The union that represents Wichita firefighters says something needs to be done about the new 911 system after a woman died in an apartment fire in October.
Sedgwick County held a press conference Tuesday afternoon laying out a minute-by-minute timeline of how emergency communications responded.
Timeline
The following timeline is compiled from Emergency Communications records:
03:57:29 – The first call was received
03:59:45 – Fire crews were dispatched
04:02:44 – A second alarm was requested
04:02:58 – The first unit arrived on the scene
04:10:36 -10 calls have been received regarding the incident
04:11:38 – Firefighters go defensive (they are fighting the fire from the exterior and cannot enter the building)
04:11:55 – 12 firefighting apparatuses & trucks and 32 firefighters are on scene engaging in the fire
04:12:06 – 13 apparatuses on scene with 37 firefighters, 2nd alarm response fulfilled except for one truck and a squad, but there is an extra ladder truck and rescue truck on scene
04:12:11 – Mayday was initiated on the WFD tactical channel, which is not a main channel monitored
04:12:11 – 15 firefighting apparatuses & trucks and 38 firefighters are on scene engaging in the fire
04:20:16 – Remaining 3 apparatuses are dispatched to fulfill the 2nd alarm request along with another engine company
04:33:00 – 18 firefighting apparatuses & trucks and 51 firefighters are on scene engaging in the fire
04:37:49 – Primary all clear on the structure
Breakdown
The victim, Paoly Bedeski, 22, was the first person to call 911 from the Brookhollow Apartments near Central and Rock Road. It was 3:58 a.m. on Oct. 13. Bedeski was trapped in her apartment.
The International Association of Firefighters Local 135 played a recording of Bedeski’s 911 call during their own news conference Tuesday afternoon at the union office, 428 N. Saint Francis.
In the recording, you can hear panic in Bedeski’s voice as she talks to 911. IAFF said her apartment was filling with smoke, and she was struggling to answer the dispatcher’s questions. She stopped responding after 47 seconds.
Her last words were, “Help me, please!”
Dispatchers notified firefighters at 3:59:25.
IAFF says the dispatcher failed to recognize that Bedeski was trapped and never told firefighters there was a woman trapped or her apartment address – Apt. 306.
The dispatched call went out as an “apartment fire.” IAFF said it should have gone out as an “apartment fire with persons trapped” so that EMS crews would have also been sent.
IAFF says there are no dedicated 911 call takers between 2:30 a.m. and 9:30 a.m., leaving dispatchers to answer the calls and dispatch crews.
A woman in apartment 304 called 911 at 4:00:05. She told the dispatcher, “The whole building is on fire.” IAFF says that information was also not given to responding firefighters. The union says the couple in Apt. 304 jumped to escape the fire.
A fourth caller, at 4:00:41, said she was nearby and saw a “huge” fire and could hear people yelling for help.
At 4:02:05, someone with Wichita Fire Department Squad 15 asks 911 if they know the apartment number. The dispatcher responds, “Possibly apartment 304.” IAFF says the WFD is still unaware people are trapped.
IAFF said for each 911 call about the fire, a new call for service, CFS, is created. The information for each new CFS is not immediately available to firefighters. IAFF says the result is delays in receiving critical information.
At 4:02:39, WFD Engine 15 requested 911 issue a second alarm to get more help to the scene because the arriving firefighters could see heavy fire from Rock Road.
IAFF says the second alarm wasn’t transmitted until 17 minutes, 18 seconds after the request. However, two other WFD companies across town heard the call and self-dispatched themselves to the fire.
IAAF calls for investigation
“What we’re calling for is a third-party investigation into this fire. Into what happened between 911 and the fire department, the communication, where was the breakdown?” Ted Bush, President of the IAFF Local 135, asked. “This is not just a mistake on the fire ground, and this is not a time to point fingers. I’m not pointing fingers. This is not the time for that. This is a time to be honest with each other, to put one foot in front of the other and do and make the tough decisions that need to be made to fix this vital important entity of emergency services.”
Sedgwick County leaders respond
Sedgwick County leaders acknowledged there was a delay in issuing a full second alarm and sending other crews to the scene and have since done re-training with staff and worked with WFD leadership.
“So we definitely evaluated the training that had occurred on the second alarm response to see where those gaps, why that training didn’t follow through in operation like we expected it to. And then those gaps were addressed in that training,” said Elora Forshee, the director of Sedgwick County Emergency Communications.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
KSN’s Craig Andres is continuing to look into the allegations from the union and the response from the County. Tune into KSN News at 10 p.m. for a complete report.