News and Commentary

Report: Broward Sheriff’s Office Captain Repeatedly Refused Permission For Local Paramedics To Enter Parkland School

Hank Berrien

According to the Miami Herald, paramedics from Coral Springs-Parkland Fire Department who urgently wanted to enter Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School during the Valentine’s Day shooting were refused permission by the Broward Sheriff’s Office captain in charge of the scene, Jan Jordan.

17 people were murdered by the school shooter that day; 17 more were injured. The Herald reports, “Michael McNally, deputy chief for Coral Springs fire-rescue, asked six times for permission to send in specialized teams of police officers and paramedics, according to an incident report he filed.” McNally wanted two Rescue Task Force (RTF) teams that were each comprised of three paramedics and three to four law enforcement officers to enter, but he said Jordan turned him down. He wrote in the report, “The [BSO] incident commander advised me, ‘She would have to check.’ After several minutes, I requested once again the need to deploy RTF elements into the scene to … initiate treatment as soon as possible. Once again, the incident commander expressed that she ‘would have to check before approving this request.’”

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