Police: Patient stabs EMT inside ambulance at Manhattan hospital
NEW YORK -- An EMT remains in serious but stable condition after police say she was stabbed multiple times by a patient inside an ambulance on Wednesday night.
It happened outside of Mount Sinai West in Manhattan, but officials said she was transferred to Mount Sinai Morningside, where she's now recovering.
Watch Alecia Reid's initial report
In a show of support, hospital workers applauded as the EMT was being pushed on a stretcher after police say she was attacked by a patient she was treating at around 9 p.m.
"I saw the ambulance right there. It stopped right there. But it was suddenly. I saw the door open, and someone was running to the emergency room," one witness said.
Police said the ambulance was pulling up to Mount Sinai West near West 59th Street and Ninth Avenue when suddenly a patient pulled out a knife and started stabbing the EMT multiple times in the stomach and leg -- inside the ambulance.
"I saw the lady was on the floor and some of the workers went inside the ambulance. There's a guy inside," a witness said. "Somebody saying, 'He got a knife! He got a knife!'"
Police took the patient, 48-year-old Rudy Garcia, of the Bronx, into custody. They described him as "emotionally unhinged." He was charged with assault, criminal possession of a weapon and obstructing governmental administration.
Police sources say Garcia has eight prior arrests, including busts for fare evasion, robbery, assault, menacing, and drug possession. He was imprisoned in 1995 for attempted robbery and attempted drug possession in Manhattan and was paroled in 1997.
The FDNY took to Twitter on Thursday to remind everyone of the dangers EMTs often face.
FDNY EMTs and Paramedics helps protect our city by providing the highest level of pre-hospital emergency care. They face many dangers while on duty, including assault, and are protected by NYS Law. Assaulting an #FDNY EMT or Paramedic is a felony punishable by 7 years in prison. pic.twitter.com/fZWNnlG8gT
— FDNY (@FDNY) July 20, 2023
"We do transport a lot of patients that are having mental issues. We are not trained or protected," said Jesus Palacios, a paramedic at Mount Sinai West and a delegate of 1199 union. "Me, myself, two years ago, I got chased by an axe.
"We are having a difficult time just handling call volume and handling the assignments on our own," he added.
Especially because they work in pairs and one has to drive.
"At the time of transport, one person is in the back with the patient and the other person is driving the vehicle to the hospital," Palacios said.
New York State law says assaulting an EMT is a felony, punishable by up to seven years behind bars.