FORT WORTH (1080 KRLD)- MedStar, the ambulance provider for Fort Worth and other cities in Tarrant County, responded to 16 calls Wednesday for patients dealing with heat-related illness. Of the patients with heat-related illness, MedStar says ten were taken to the hospital, one in critical condition.
The National Weather Service says the temperature reached 93 degrees Wednesday, with the heat index reaching 108. A heat advisory continues until 7 p.m. Thursday.
While the heat advisory is in place, MedStar will respond to calls where the patient is outside at a higher priority, with lights and sirens running even if the initial call is not for a life threatening condition.
MedStar crews treated 16 patients for heat illness yesterday, 10 serious enough to need transport to area hospitals, 1 critical. The heat is on North Texans! Be careful as we enter the HOT holiday weekend! https://t.co/bkw7cBcM0L pic.twitter.com/4qUPOa0lmN
— MedStar EMS Alerts (@MedStarEMSInfo) July 2, 2020"The North Texas heat can be very oppressive," says MedStar's Matt Zavadsky. "One of the things we worry about is a patient who does not have a heat-related emergency, if they're outside for a period of time in an unprotected area from a fall or an ankle injury or something similar, if they're out there too long, they could actually develop a heat-related emergency."
Zavadsky says responding at a higher priority can get a patient out of the heat more quickly, but it can also let police and firefighters who may have responded return to their cars. He says COVID-19 also presents a challenge to paramedics responding to heat-related calls.
"Now, you've got, not only the uniform, but gowns, masks and maybe even a face shield. It's even more difficult for the field responders now, given this type of weather," he says.
Zavadsky says paramedics across the area always see a spike in calls when the first heat wave hits each year.
"Come August, we're all going to be really good at hydrating. We're all going to be really good at limiting our time outdoors," he says. "But just like the beginning of the cold season, we're like, 'Oh, yeah, it's 108 degrees outside. I really can't cut the entire yard at one time like I might have been able to do a month ago.'"
On Friday, the National Weather Service says temperatures will likely reach into the upper 90s, but a northerly flow will allow slightly drier air to spread into most of North Texas, reducing the heat index. The National Weather Service says it does not expect to expand the heat advisory beyond Thursday evening.
