Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz chose a mild fall-like day to make a statement in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, on Saturday that took many by surprise.
Poloncarz suggested that those critical of his recently released "essential personnel" weather driving ban policy, "Don't call 9-1-1 after getting stuck and demand we save your sorry patriot butts."
After hundreds of angry responses to the statement, Poloncarz followed up by clarifying and saying, "Of course we respond to all 9-1-1 calls, even for those who put themselves in harm's way."
The social media post even led the Erie County Republican Party to issue a statement, saying in part, "A public official — who is literally responsible for managing the county’s E911 system — telling people who disagree with him to not seek emergency assistance is completely reckless, and disqualifying."
Poloncarz suggested those replying to his post were intending to not comply with his policy, which was announced during a press conference Thursday. The policy requires employers to complete a registration process to determine if any of their employees would be considered to be "essential" in the event of a driving ban in the county.
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