The headline from the Marist/NY1 poll today is Mayor Bloomberg's approval ratings are at an all-time low. Just 37% approve of the job he is doing. Why take a poll when you can just read this blog? Why call New Yorkers when they call us every night? The Mayor has been getting hammered for the past 11 days. The findings are not news to me. But you knew that too, didn't you.

In the aftermath of the disastrous response to last week's blizzard, Mayor Bloomberg announced today that changes will be made for tomorrow's storm. Scouts will be out in the five boroughs transmitting live images of trouble spots to City Hall. In addition, 50 plows in South Brooklyn will have GPS devices to monitor progress. Meteorologists are predicting up to six inches.

The Mayor also commented on the demotion of the chief of EMS after more than a hundred ambulances got stuck on unplowed roadways. Bloomberg said he made the decision to replace John Peruggia because "we did not get the service the public wants." What do you say?

Do you think the changes announced today will improve the City's response to future snowstorms? What ideas do you have? Should the head of EMS have been demoted, or does the fault in slow emergency response lie elsewhere?

Send your thoughts using the link above.

Bloomberg should be ashamed of the continuing disgraceful behavior he's exhibited during the Dec.26 snowstorm response. Punishing an underling for his own lapses is reprehensible. This is Bloomberg's screwup -- his and Doherty's.

Shelley

The real question is how much resources is the City willing to commit for 6 inches of snow? In this dire economic time, resources are to be judiciously utilized and citizens willing to do more with less. This time we are in calls for sacrifice and giving back to the society and our community.

George
LeFrak

Bloomberg is firing and demoting people because of last week's snow storm amid incompetence. If he wants to fire people to make the city work better and stop the incompetence, he should start by firing himself since he illegally pursued a third term as mayor, and has raped the middle and lower class of its money with manipulating the parking laws, so people are forced to park illegally, then more than doubling the fines. He also allowed the city to be over build to get more property taxes whiles raising property taxes. We need a mayoral recall like California had with governor.

Ylder

I BELIEVE THE MAYOR DEMOTED THE WRONG PERSON HE SHOULD HAVE DEMOTED THE HEAD OF THE SANITATION HE WAS LOOKING FOR SOME ONE TO BLAME AND LOOK WHO HE PICKED AFTER SIX YEARS ON THIS POSITION HE GETS A SWIFT KICK AND MIND YOU HE TURNED EMS AROUND WHAT IS WRONG WITH THE MAYOR ? HE SHOULD BE TO BLAME WHERE WAS HE ? IN BERMUDA RELAXING WHILE WE ALL WENT THROUGH HELL WITH THE SNOW AND DELAYS WITH WITH THE TRANSIT EMS GARBAGE SOME ONE IS TO BLAME AND ITS BLOOMBERG HIMSELF

SINCERELY
JOAN

The Chief of EMS didn't deliver the service the public wants - THE CHIEF OF THE DOS didn't deliver the service the public NEEDED. Why isn't Doherty's head rolling. Why this guy. How were those ambulances supposed to move if the sanitation plows didn't clear the roads? BLOOMBERG'S head should roll also for not declaring the City in a State of Emergency.

The only thing that is going to improve the response to the snow, is the trucks working the streets. Who cares if they are notifying City Hall of problem streets - get a plow there and plow. The same time they're notifying City Hall they can be notifying the garage of the plow trucks. Typical Bloomberg stuff - let's collect photographs - data if you will and we'll study it. GET THE JOB DONE AND GET IT DONE RIGHT!!

Tomorrow's storm is supposed to be in the daytime, while people are at work. Are we all going to be stranded at our workplace because there is no way of getting home on unplowed roadways? How are the school buses going to roll at dismissal time? OF COURSE it has to be better than the blizzard. A 1/4 of the amount of snow and there's no more excuses.

Jessica, Arden Heights, Staten Island.

Not all garbage has been collected. Dyker Heights, specifically 14th Ave., is still waiting. (Our scheduled pick up day is Wednesday.)

Thanks,
John

Peruggia should not have been the sacrificial lamb for the Bloomberg administrations botched response to the storm! The public did not want you for a third term and look at what we got? A bonafide fudge up! Mayor why don't you save everyone the grief and step down! And take yuh circus with you! You should be ashamed of yourself and those who you appointed to manage such emergencies.

DW QNS

The first storm hasn`t totally been dealt with ,so when the new blanket falls, remnants of the old storm will add to the problems.

Rosalie from Canarsie

Re; the demotion of the EMS chief.........

Just goes to show who is, and who isn't politically connected. The EMS chief was not responsible for the snow.........(!)

Torin
Jamaica, Queens

I applaud all the changes that are being implemented in preparation for tomorrows snowfall and future snow events. If we have learned anything from the last storm is that peoples lives and livelihoods are put in jeopardy when the city is ill prepared for such events.

Felix
Bay Ridge

Instead of scapegoating subordinates the Sanitation Commisioner's head should roll.(figuratively, that is) And somebody has to be at the helm while the Emperor dons bermuda shorts. Its snow not a putting green. Bon Voyage and can somebody pick up my garbage.

JS
Flushing

Mayor Mike had to find a scapegoat and he could not touch the DOS Commissioner because of loyalties. I don't think it is the head of EMS's fault. He simply could not get to the people because the streets were not plowed but EMS could have walked or ran instead of driving into non-plowed streets. I think you should have a plow attached to each and every ambulance. Not a big one, just a small, light plow, in case they need to get through unplowed areas.

I can't wait to see what happens at the City Council meeting on the 9th. I think we are going to see more leaders go. Don't just try to point fingers...that would be a waste of time. Look at the turn of events. DOS supervisors get demoted, they are upset, a snow storm comes, what do they do? They are all unhappy about the demotion. They send the City a message: don't mess with us or you will have consequences. Did they break any laws? Who organized the slow down? Is it ethical? Is it moral? What is the price? Who is going to pay the price? Big questions. Time will tell. We will eventually get to the bottom of this.

Eugene
Queens

If they demoted Peruggia I find it justifiable. He is fortunate he has a job thanks to his former ranking position. No one can hold themselves exempt especially the way things are.

Anna
Kips Bay

Hi John,

The wrong one was replaced and the one that should resign is the Mayor himself without any question. This man should not have been thrown under the bus so to speak. The chief of EMS is just a ploy so that this mayor can cover his own a-- because when it comes time to sue you and the city because of the people that died they will still go after you not the EMS worker. Good try I'll give you that. Your are just a sneak and we are all on to you.

MR. MAYOR DID YOU HEAR WHAT I SAID YOU HAVE MADE THIS MOVE JUST TO COVER UP THE FACT THAT PEOPLE DIED AND YOU HAD THE NERVE TO BRAG ABOUT TOURISM AGAIN. YOU ARE SICK, SICK, SICK. I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW WHY IF YOU ARE SUCH A GENIUS IN EVERY WAY DO YOU NOT KNOW HOW TO RUN THIS CITY AND YOU DO NOT KNOW ABOUT WHAT THE PROTOCOL SHOULD BE WHEN A SNOW STORM HITS.

WHAT I THINK HAPPENED IS THAT YOU LIED THAT YOU WERE HERE IN THE CITY AND TO ADD TO THE LIE YOU USED THE EXCUSE THAT YOU WERE IN CHURCH AND YOU WERE TOLD THAT YOU WERE IN CHURCH CHRISTMAS EVE AND HOW DARE YOU USE MY RELIGION AS AN EXCUSE FOR YOUR OWN SELFISH BEING. DO US ALL A FAVOR AND JUST LEAVE AND STOP TRYING SO HARD TO BUILD UP YOUR LEGACY BECAUSE IT IS NOT WORKING.

maxxiee
mp

John,

Living up to his reputation, Napoleon Bloomberg points his finger anywhere except toward himself. He can do no wrong. After all, like Cathie Black, he’s a manager.

He’ll never take responsibility for any problems. Nor will any of his cohorts in poor service.

All I can say to Bloomberg is, shovel it.

Joe
Port Richmond, SI

John,

The layoffs of city workers is what really impacted last week's blizzard. For those in power, they have no idea how the "little guy struggles" each and every day to survive in the most expensive city in the US. The demotion of the chief of the EMS should send a message to all these political people that they work for us not the other way around.

Jeanne
Flushing, NY

Did we ever ascertain where the Mayor was when the snow started. I believe I heard he attended midnight Mass but I didn't hear where. If the Mayor was out of town do we know who was in charge that remained in New York City while the Mayor was gone? We see that this stupid pact the Mayor seems to have with the press about not disclosing his whereabouts on weekends is severely flawed.

RICHARD
KENSINGTON, BROOKLYN

I am so sick of all the BS the mayor has been saying. He screwed up big time by not plowing the outer boroughs. I guess the New Year's Eve Party in Times Square had more importance then the people in the outer boroughs. If it was'nt bad enough that we got snowed in by but now he is trying to snow job us about garbage collections. My collection days are wed. and sat. and we haven't had a pick up since before Christmas. He said everyone's garbage was picked up once already. That is a lie.... Just like every block was plowed. Sanitation has yet to do my neighborhood and with the snow for tomorrow, we wont get picked up on saturday. So we will have missed a total of "5" garbage pick ups. But I bet Manhattan has had their garbage picked up, so the tourist wont see it. He, in my opinion, is the worst mayor ever. I feel like driving to his home and dumping my garbage there but I would get ticketed for dumping. For someone who claims to be one of the greatest mayor ever, he has failed the people of MASPETH!

Shirley
Maspeth, Queens

Just listened to the Mayor and head of sanitation who stated all garbage has been picked up and may go into round two...well, here in Ridgewood at the Bklyn/Queens borderline between Onderdonk & Woodward Ave. the garbage is still piled on the west side of the street. We've not had a pick up since Dec. 22nd. My daughter's garbage was picked up on Tues of this week...she lives in upper Manhattan. Our recycles are also waiting...guess not going to happen with new snow coming in. I was happy to hear about "big brother" watching some of the trucks.

Love the show...good job

Babs in Ridgewood

1/6/2010 Bay Ridge, Brooklyn

4 days after storm, finally got a plow down our street, though for half the block, plow was UP. Since garbage collection has resumed, still no pick up. Our pick ups are Wednesdays and Saturdays. I have not seen one sanitation truck, anywhere, for over a week.

jm

Why did Peruggia take the hit instead of Goldsmith or Doherty? It is a horrible tragedy that people died when ambulances could not get them help quickly enough. Not sure why you blame the ambulances instead of the guys who didn't clear their paths. There were certainly more fireable screwups above and to the side of Peruggia.

And still no apology from Bloomberg...

Anni
UWS

So, the mayor has decided to employ GPS tracking devices and to send out scout teams armed with video cameras to keep an eye on the trucks and plows during the expected storm. He is clearly attempting to shift the blame for last week's debacle onto the sanitation workers and their union, implying that the rumors of an intentional slow down were true. I'd rather see a scout team following around Bloomberg to see what he's doing while the clean-up is going on. Perhaps instead of giving them video cameras, he should give them shovels and plows.

Gary
(College Point)

EMERGENCY RESPONDERS HAD TO BATTLE UNPLOWED ROADWAYS. TO DO THIS DEMOTION TO JOHN PERRUGIA IS AN ABSOLUTE DISGRACE. PLEASE NOTE, ON STATEN ISLAND THE HEROIC DISPLAYS BY THE E.M.S. CREWS AND FIREFIGHTERS. THOSE STORIES INCLUDE THE ABOVE MENTIONED OF CARRYING MY FRIENDS GIRLFRIEND TO THE AMBULANCE THAT WAS STUCK ON HIS STREET BECAUSE OF THE SOLE FAILURE OF THE DEPARTMENT CHARGED WITH THE PLOWING FAILED. DOHERTY'S RESIDENTIAL STREET LOOKED LIKE THE CARRIBEAN. JOE BRUNO SHOULD TAKE THE FALL BEFORE ANYBODY. WHEN AN EMERGENCY ARISES, HIS VOICE IS THE ONLY ONE TO BE HEARD AFTER THE FACTS ARE IN, HE SHOULD SEND OUT THE ORDERS..

JOE, BAY TERRACE

I do not know if the chief of EMS deserved to be demoted or not. I do not know what action or inaction he may have taken to warrant the demotion. What I do know is that a major part of the EMS poor response was due to the lack of snow removal. That problem existed throughout the city yet only two Brooklyn sanitation supervisors were relocated(not demoted). The sanitation department is the main reason the EMS response was so poor. Is the Chief of EMS being used as a scapegoat? Something does not seem right. I think the Mayor announced his surveillance plans to be sure the sanitation supervisors and workers know they are being watched to help ensure that what happened last week does not happen this time.

Sandy, Howard Beach

What does the mayor think this is Space Station From Mars? He is way off base-and furthermore to replace John Peruggia because his people could not get to people in need of assistance is assinine! His people could not get to anyone because the Dept. of Sanitation dropped the ball! Plain& simple- I think Bloomberg ought to check himself into Bellview for a few weeks!

Chip
Formally of the upper East Side

Bloomberg's response has C.Y.A. written all over it.

John Peruggia was a sacrificial lamb, thrown on his sword to deflect criticism from the mayor and deputy mayor of operations Stephen Goldsmith, neither of whom was in town while the City was buried by the blizzard (according to the Daily News), and from John Doherty and Janet Sadik-Khan, both of whom pounded the table demanding that the City not declare a snow emergency (according to the New York Times), a decision which helped paralyzed the City.

Bloomberg, fess up that you messed up, and start chopping from the top to restore some shred of credibility to your reputation as a manager.

Pete from Manhattan

I find it really comical that Mayor Bloomberg feels the appropriate response to citizen's displeasure with his handling of the recent snow storm is to put GPS devices on the vehicles of the sanitation dept. Instead of man-ing up and just taking responsibility- not saying it but showing that he really belives that the "buck stops here" and not throw any city agency under the bus. In some positions of authority within N.Y. if calamity occurs even while the boss is away, be it vacation etc. he is relived of his position- why? because it happened on HIS WATCH- if that rule of thumb is good for the goose it's good for the mayor. Stop blaming NYCDOS!

*CG*

Hi Antonio from Bayridge/DykerHeights. We would have to se eand wait on another major snow strom like the one we just had. This 6 inches or so of snow is a drop in the bucket. I also think that the blame lies on the sanitation workers not the one in charge of the EMS. But these changes are perhaps a first step.

How could the EMS get through the snow if the DSNY had not done its job? Bloomberg and Doherty are scapegoating the EMS chief. Bloomberg is a disaster. He should resign.

Frances
East Village

Hi John,

I think that the blame should be full circle. How can you demote the chief of EMS and not the deputy mayor? Its another way of Bloomberg not taking responsibility for his screw up. In this game of politics the person that is more politically expendable will become the scapegoat and you cant be a Mayor when things are working well for the city and throw others under the bus when its not.

Veronica
Astoria

THURSDAY evening, and the garbage is piling higher by the day at 88th btn west end and riverside!...and 311 is "not accepting calls" on the topic! Help!!!! There is a wall without pause, from wea and riverside.

First and foremost, the mayor should not come across as arrogant and nasty. Secondly, he should let the experts he appointed do their jobs. And when he said he is entitled to a private life. Yes, but not the day before a blizzard. So now, we will all pay for the mayor's blunder as he will show everyone how great he is by going overboard , or is that overtime galore, for every minor snowstorm from here on in.

Andy from Great Kills, SI

Ems emt and paramedics in nyc are among the best in the country. The demotion of this chief is not warranted and unjust. Try and get an ambulance down a street with twenty inches of snow...maybe ems should put plows on there trucks.

Michael

Hi John. They better not leave us buried again. I heard it's likely to be 3-6 inches, not 1-3. There are still large mountains of snow in places around here, not to mention backlogged garbage on the sidewalks. This is going to be insult to injury. The GPS devices on the trucks are a fine idea but how will that affect another sickout if 10-15% of the sanitation department calls out sick again? And how will those devices affect the plows being left a bit higher so as not to thoroughly plow again?

And will the MTA do any better this time either? What surveillance measures are being put in place for mass transit? I can hardly type that with a straight face.

Everyone in my neighborhood and the rest of Queens is just exhausted and demoralized. But I'd like to say that your show is a measure of comfort. At least you're on our side, John. :}

Sunnyside, Queens: exhausted and demoralized

What does the poor chief of ems have to do with the city's failure to respond to the snow storm???? If the streets were clean, ems could have gotten through. Sanitation should take the hit, along with OEM for not responding to the storm. John Peruggia should not have been demoted. What about Joe Bruno and the sanitation commissioner???????????

The biggest part of the problem is that our Mayor keeps forgetting that NYC is five boroughs, and not just Manhattan. He really needs to move out to Sheepshead Bay, or Bayside, and then try to commute during a mess like the last blizzard, and stop doing a Marie Antoinette impersonation.

Deb

Bloomberg is an outrageous cowardly hippocrite. He blames everybody but himself. What a lowlife. The ambulances couldn't through because of the lack of snow plowing and the busses couldn't move because they all recently had new tires that were made for endurance rather than traction. The busses were supposed to have snow chains, but the stupid MTA fired the "little people" who install the chains!

Frances
East Village

What did demoting Chief Peruggia accomplish? Peruggia was dealt a poor hand. Anyone in his shoes would have had a difficult time. Had the streets been plowed, ambulances would not have been stuck.

Jason - Bensonhurst

If heads are going to roll it should start first with the Sanitation commissioner and then the CEO of the MTA. How come the former EMS chief was demoted when he had nothing to do with plowing the streets and driving buses and subways?

How could the city blame the EMS chief for picking up snow and driving buses and trains?

Paula

It simply doesn't make sense to me that an EMS Chief should be held accountable for getting ambulances through 2 feet of unplowed snow, proving, once again, that common sense often has no place in government.

Joseph
Park Slope, Brooklyn

The mayor is getting very good at answering us after the fact. There is more snow coming tommorow. Where is the salt everywhere? Where is the mayor's briefing about that?

Tamar

It was n ot the fault of EMS Chief John Peruggia that EMS was unable to respond to so many emergency calls during the blizzard -how could EMS vehicles get through the streets that were blocked by buses and ambulances due to blowing and drifting snow? What planet is Mayor bloomberg on? He is definitely wrong to replace Chief Peruggia.

Submitted by John
fresh Meadows, NY

What does the poor chief of ems have to do with the city's failure to respond to the snow storm???? If the streets were clean, ems could have gotten through. Sanitation should take the hit, along with OEM for not responding to the storm. John Peruggia should not have been demoted. What about Joe Bruno and the sanitation commissioner???????????

Ann

A friend who works for sanitation once boasted to me that his crew works 4 out of 8 hours a day. He said they pull the sanitation truck to a side street and “sleep or play cards.” Why would they work any harder during a snowstorm?

Evan
Forest Hills

Bloomberg is suppose to be "Big Brother," but Big Brother has failed us last time and will fail us this time! Garbage piling up, streets unshoveled, and people being mad, make the urban conditions of the 1800's come to life! Adding scouts, GPS, etc. will only be flawd! Schiumo for mayor!!!

Daniel
Maspeth

Why does the head of Ems lose his job and Jay Walder Mta Honcho get to keep his job with all the failures of the Transit Authority during this snowstorm.Hopefully Andrew Cuomo will realize what a big fat failure this man was during the snowstorm.

Tony from Flatbush

I voted for Bloomberg each time because I consider him a good manager but his decision to fire EMS chief is a bone head decision. Bloomberg need to fire the OEM and Sanitation Commissioners. Emergency decisions are base on the information received from OEM. Sanitation commissioner did not have the street clean. OEM AND SANITATION DROPPED THE BALL

Anonymous

The dot management should be demoted because the sanitation department did not remove the snow and they did not pick up the garbage either. Mayor Bloomberg hires people to conduct their job and did not perform, those people need to be punished for their actions or should I say limited actions.

Kind Regards,
Tonia in Harlem, NY

The responsibility is both the Mayor's and theSanitation Department's. If sanitation has a beef with the Mayor, take it up with him, but not at our expense. Blaming the EMS is ridiculous

Judy from flushing

Who will be blamed next--the MTA for the buses not getting through unplowed streets? If anything, the EMS should be applauded for trying to get through.

Taj B.

People seem to be forgetting that this was one of the largest blizzards in history. People are all caught up in blaming. Sometimes the government cannot be responsible for Mother Nature.

Peter in Hells Kitchen

Sanitation is not to blame. A lot of people called 911 for minor issues. Also sanitation is not responsible especially since they are down 400 men and have been given faulty and cheap equipment. Ultimately Bloomberg is to blame for not calling a snow emergency !

David

Blizzard of 2010 exposes Bloomberg and his staff as incompetent, I wonder if they were also working with the MTA signal managers lying about their jobs.

STEVE/QUEENS VILLAGE

Hi John,

I think that the blame should be full circle. How can you demote the chief of EMS and not the deputy mayor? Its another way of Bloomberg not taking responsibility for his screw up. In this game of politics the person that is more politically expendable will become the scapegoat and you cant be a Mayor when things are working well for the city and throw others under the bus when its not.

Veronica
Astoria

Its emabarrasing for our mayor to demote the EMS chief. Had the sanitation dept. plowed the streets, as they were supposed to do there would not be any issues getting ambulances where they needed to go. Should they install plows on the ambulances next time. This is ridiculous!

Lee from Woodhaven

Sanitation is not to blame. A lot of people called 911 for minor issues. Also sanitation is not responsible especially since they are down 400 men and have been given faulty and cheap equipment. Most streets were blocked by disabled cars because of the lack of a snow emergency being declared !!! Ultimately Bloomberg is to blame for not calling a snow emergency !

Thanks,
Dave from ozone park queens

Bloomberg's illogical decision to demote the EMS chief is a joke. While he's at it, let's just demote every person that was unable to get to work that Monday.

lisa from cobble hill

This is ridiculous, sanitation dropped the ball and I am speechless at the decision to demote the man from EMS. This is just one of those moments that it is so stupid that it leaves me so speechless. Its like blaming the ship makers for the slave trade.

Bishnu

Michael from Ridgewood,

How about it's right after Christmas and it's very convenient for the guys driving the plows wanted to pay off some holiday debt with some good overtime... So let me sleep through the storm so when it's 1&2 feet deep everywhere and I have to work longer hours I get a nice fat check... Maybe that's why they added gps... So we can make sure they are plowing non stop like they should have been in the first place...

Wasn't the mayor out of town when we had the last snow storm? So, the focus shouldn't be him but the people in charge.

Bethania; Parkchester

it's clear an investigation needed to happen as a result of the failures of various city departments during the storm. as a result some suggestions have been made for improving storm related services. however, as far as the demotion of the EMS chief goes, obviously Bloomberg needed a "human" scapegoat as well. why doesn't he just demote himself as he is far more responsible for whatever systemic failures occurred than anyone else.

Marilyn, Ditmas Park

HOW IS A RECALL OF BLOOMBERG STARTED?

KEN
MANHATTAN

It is great that the Mayor has decided to be so proactive with the snow that we are to expect, BUT it is only 3 inches of snow. WHAT city would not be able to handle 3 inches? This storm will only seem to work in his favor because it is hardly what we call a snow storm.

Lets focus on collecting the trash that is still sitting outside.

Mondo in Inwood.

I do hope the mayor do as he promise this time. Cause I am a little afraid of what
happen the last storm.

Ruthann
Queens

I think it is unfair that the man from ems was fired because if the snow was plow the ambulance would of gotten to the emergency,but mayor bloombery need someone to take the fall for what had happen which is bad especially for bloombery when he should be settle an example for the city of new york he should own up for what had happen

Kathy

Hi, my name is Michael

I live in gueens and the snow plow didn't come throw till 2 days after the storm. A lot of people got stock in my block and one guy got stuck for 4 1/2 hours. When the plow finally came throw it was up. Nobody could have go throw my block.

Michael Bloomberg should resign, he is not and has not done his job! Myself and over 100 passengers were stranded for over 5 hours on the B and Q line at the Church Avenue train station and the MTA and Mr. Bloomberg did absolutely nothing. I am so glad this is his last term. Wish we had Rudolph Giuliani.

Thanks
Juana
Sheepshead Bay.

The demotion of the ems chief is unjust and unfair..ems workers save numerous lives each day. We have the best emts and paramedics in the country..maybe ems should plows in front of ems trucks..

mike
bayside

BLOOMBERG IS A JERK!!!!!!!!!!

How could the EMS workers do their job when the Sanitation Department and Bloomberg failed to do their jobs. What did Bloomberg want the EMS trucks to do, fly over the snow. I feel he used the EMS Chief as a "SCAPEGOAT". His head should of been the first to roll, and the Chief of the Sanitation department should have been in second place.

Theresa
Upper West Side

to bill from richmond town the dsny did not have a slow down , the mayor droped the ball and it looks like the dsny didnt do there jobs but it take the shot callers to tell the workers what to do and when to do it . mayor bloomberg should step down and all new yorkers should have him step down . its a shame the best city in america can get it right !!!

thanks michale. staten island new york .

Shame on us for voting the mayor in office 3 times. The Feds should investigate the scam he pulled off in getting the term limits extended just so he could fool us one more time

Tom
Staten Island

It is redicilious that the commissioner was demoted for what reason.The need to put plows on the ambulance if they need them to plow the snow also.The sanitation should pre plan and expect the worst for a snow storm.Don't you agree.

thanks
shiv

how to avoid another snow emergency nyc

1. Replace the mayor
2. Hire enough sanitation workers
3. Buy better equipment for snow removal

David

Lynne from Flushing writes...I hold the department of sanitation accountable for the post-blizzard chaos and sloth,not the EMS or FDNY. That demotion was a bone that fooled nobody. And please screen your calls more carefully. Mayor Bloomberg is not a Nazi, and "like, ya know," is not terribly persuasive. I have very few problems with the Mayor in general, but this episode disappoints me.

Hi John

I am a senior living on New Lane our street did not get plowed until Wednesday afternoon and my brothers street who has 2 sanitation workers living on it Winchester ave was plowed 9 times before New lane with 250 seniors living on it was not the fault of EMS put GPS on sanitation trucks

Ellen on Staten Island

Hi this is Sarah from Jamaica Queens

I believed that the Mayor is really going after the wrong person. What can the EMS cheif do in the case of a snow emergency where the vehicle is being stuck in the snow. If the sanitation had done their job on a timely manor this situation was never going to be a problem. Mayor Bloomberg should be the one being demoted. What was he doing when the street where not being salted nor plow.

The City should invest in all terrain snowmobile-based tread systems for trucks (truck tracks) to install on ambulances. They are basically tank treads that can be easily outfitted on a handful of ambulances to replace normal tires, and the number of lives saved would easily justify their expense of 15-20k dollars per unit. This way EMS, the most critical of all agencies, could still serve the public in spite of the failures of others.

Evan from Queens

You guys have GOT to be kidding!!! Here in St. Albans on 112th Avenue the streets are lined with garbage bags and my garage is filling up with blue recycle bags. In Bayside where I work on 213th Avenue garbage cans are lining the street!! Driving around Queens Village, Cambria Heights, Laurelton there are garbage cans and bags everywhere!! So how can they say the trash has been picked up at least once!!! I beg to differ!!!

Erslyn
Queens

Happy New Year!

It's very easy to point fingers when things go wrong, and mostly everyone is pointing fingers on the Mayor. But what is disturbing me is that we have political of every level for each boro and no one mention what have they done in their community to make sure when a crisis happen, is their responsibity to response. why have they haven't done their job to keep their community safe and be ready when things happen like a very bad storm. Where is our Boro President, Assembly and Senators and Congressman. That is why we have them so they can take care of their community district they represent. I think is unfair that people is pointing fingers at the Mayor. I feel is all political cause soon there is going to be certain people that want to run for that seat. Shame on every political that didn't do their job for the community they represent. Is our duty to take care where we live.

Rev Hernandez

The public doesn't know who was in charge of NY city during the blizzard. Mr. Bloomberg was on vacation. Which deputy commissioner was in charge ? Every public employee has a schedule . Why isn't the mayor's schedule public ? The mayor wants credit for everything except responsibility for his failure ! He has been the worst mayor !

Mario

Since Bloomberg demoted the Chief of EMS for the incompetence of City Hall Staff, I guess he will demote the Parks Commissioner for when Cathy Black fails as the School Chancellor after one year on the job.

STEVE/QUEENS VILLAGE

The Sanitation Dept was under "instruction" to not make the efforts we've seen in the past, i.e. Last years' blizzard was worse and they were out in full force as it fell. Their lack of presence was clearly felt...this mess is thanks to some spiteful higher-ups (Doherty has blood on his hands)

How about the Mayor takes some responsibility? The mayor is out of control and adds insult to injury by demoting our EMS Chief? The paramedics in this city are our daily unsung heroes, the EMS chief is completely innocent in this mess and is being used as a scapegoat by the mayor. How in the name of Heaven is the EMS chief to blame unplowed streets? How about the dos chief getting a demotion? Does the little tyrant in city hall think we are all idiots?

Please, EMS chief, please get a good lawyer and sue the city's head off...and the Mayor too.... MIKE GET OUT

Marie
Bay Ridge

It is so unfair to demote the ems chief because of snow. The sanitation chief should be fired! When u look at all the footage of the storm, the ems trucks and fdny were the only workers out on the street

I am embarrassed for Mayor Bloomberg that his main and first response to the snow emergency is to demote the head of EMS for not doing his job. How was he to do it if the streets were impassable with snow and abandoned vehicles? Give us a break!!! The head of OEM deserves to be sanctioned not EMS. Perhaps if the snow emergency was initiated the response would have been better.

Michael

Without meaning to be smart, when listening to Mark call in and defend Mayor Bloomberg, about 9:20 pm, I had to wonder if he had been paid to do so or if he really kisses Bloomberg’s you know what....

George

We were a victim of the gross negligence of the Sanitation Department. A Sanitation truck ripped apart my brothers car and damaged a tree in front of my house. Through all this we attempted to assist them to avoid these things from happening but they insisted they knew what they were doing. We also explained how no matter how big there trucks where unless they laid down some salt they where not able to move the trucks stuck in front of my home. It wasn't until they laid down salt and we assisted them by shoveling our own cars out of the way of the trucks that they where able to remove there vehicles. FYI the workers comments where that they where told to not salt at all until further notice and how someone was looking to make a point. There is something bigger happening here than we are being led to believe.

Moises

Call sanitation two times today asking when they're going to pick up two weeks of garbage they replied sometime today. Well its 10 pm and its still sitting there. My pu are Wednesday and Saturday and the last time they pu over here was the Wednesday before Christmas. We're getting more snow tomorrow and I feel sanitation Q5 is giving maspeth the snow job!

K
Maspeth

Thank you for your show tonight.
Mr. Bloomberg, are you kidding me? Please tell me that Mr. Peruggia"s demotion was due to some other political fault and not due to his or the EMS reaction to the snow. The EMT's WALKED THROUGH THE SNOW TO GET TO MANY OF THOSE WHO NEEDED THEIR HELP. Where were you? On "private time" ?
Has anyone thought of assigning (budgeting) plows in strategic locations to accompany any EMS vehicle called out on an emegenrcy? The Sanitation department was woefully inadequate but was it because they were not told to be put on emergency status? Whose call was that?
If Mr. Bloomberg "holds himself accountable" why is HE still in office? His private time is not private time when the city is in a crisis. Granted, for most of us not with a medical or other emergency, snowfall is not a crisis we cannot overcome in time, but what if it was a true crisis? If he was on "private time" would that have taken precedence? Obviously, he has NO IDEA how normal NYers live-- trying to get by and make a living in these difficult economic times.
I live on Riverside in the 70's. The streets (not avenues) were not plowed until the middle of the night on TUESDAY. I am a lucky one - I can get to work in the snow--I can walk 30 blocks or take a subway if they're running, but my neighbors could not. I was mobile on Monday, but many, many people were not for more than two days.

CHRIS
UPPER WEST SIDE

I believe that the entire government of NYC has to be changed if we want to see improvements in things such as snow cleanup in the future. We have to stop relying on government bureaucracies to perform important tasks such cleaning up our streets after a weather disaster. We need to start looking for different solutions that provide more accountability and that cost less money.

Bayside

I had witness a women have a massive heart attack, in the door way of her building. With her son crying his eyes out because it was a slow response to getting her help. When the fire department reach her it was hard for them to get to her, because of the snow. When the ems workers got there the same situation, in order to get to her they were using their legs to shovel the snow. That wasn't good enough because when they wanted to bring her out, the snow had built back up and they wasn't about to get her and the stretcher through. She passed away on Dec. 27 , had they started to shovel the snow maybe she would have made it. I think they should give the Ems chief his job back, and fire the sanitation dept chief he failed.

Thank You,
Shanae from Long Island City, Queens

I think it's deplorable that Peruggia, EMS Commissioner is being demoted because ambulances got stuck in the unplowed streets during the blizzard, which the Mayor, wherever he was (his private time whereabouts are not to be divulged!) never called a Snow Emergency. His management skills leave a lot to be desired. He's the one who should be "demoted"

Rose

What bothers me most is the constant inaccuracies of the statements made by both Mayor Bloomberg and the sanitation commissioner. Following the storm, the mayor insisted that all primary roads had been plowed. This is simply not true. The entire neighborhood of Dyker Heights was not plowed until Thursday after the storm. 11th avenue, a snow emergency route, was not plowed until Thursday after the storm. This Thursday, in an afternoon press conference, the sanitation commissioner stated that EVERYONE had at least one garbage pickup. My garbage was not picked up until Thursday evening, after 8 o'clock. In addition, on Wednesday, which is my scheduled day for pick up, a sanitation truck proceeded down my block, stopped at a neighbor's house and picked up their garbage AND their recycling...then disappeared. They picked up ONE house's garbage. I did contact 311 and was told that they were not accepting complaints at this time. I was not complaining that my garbage wasn't picked up...I was complaining that only ONE house's garbage was picked up. Perhaps if they were accepting complaints, the sanitation commissioner would not have made such an inaccurate statement.
If only these people considered being honest with the public, perhaps people would be more understanding when things did not run as smoothly as they should.

C.B., Brooklyn