On August 29, 2021 Hurricane Ida struck New Orleans with Category 4 winds. While the most severe weather occurred during a 24-hr period on August 29, the city suffered significant damage to telecommunication systems, medical facilities, and infrastructure for several weeks afterward. At the height of the storm, multiple events affected routine deployment of EMS, including damage to transmission lines causing interruption of the 911 system, and suspension of ambulance travel for safety when the winds exceeded 50 mph. These factors, as well as pre-storm preparations, affected utilization of EMS by residents and thus a “peri-hurricane” period was examined to determine the overall effect of Hurricane Ida on New Orleans EMS operations.

Run sheets for calls to NOEMS between August 26-September 9, 2021 were analyzed to assess the most frequently reported medical complaint just prior to and after the hurricane. Run sheets were also evaluated to determine average time from call to arrival on scene, time to arrival at patient (“response time”), and time from leaving scene to arrival at destination (“transport time”). To account for the atypical period during which EMS response was suspended due to wind, both mean and median times were calculated. Data was compared to a control period of Aug 26-Sept 9, 2022.

During the study period, 1,971 calls were received, with trauma and respiratory the most common complaints. The mean call-to-arrival time was one hour, although the median time was 15 minutes. Response time was 34 minutes compared to 21 minutes in 2022, and median response time was comparable to the control period. Transport time mean and median were 12.3 and 11.3 minutes, also similar to 2022.

Despite citywide infrastructure failures and suspension of operations for over 12 hours during landfall, multiple mitigation strategies enabled NOEMS to quickly resume operations and minimize impact on patient care times.