Houston's EMS boost for World Cup will last beyond the final match
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A Houston Fire Department ambulance. Photo: Alex Bierens de Haan/Getty Images
Houston officials say they're prepared for World Cup-related medical emergencies while maintaining citywide EMS coverage through a new contract with a private ambulance service.
Why it matters: The $5.4 million deal, approved by City Council last month, extends through 2029, giving Houston additional EMS capacity for major events beyond the World Cup and weather disasters.
State of play: Houston paramedics respond to an average of roughly 6,300 EMS calls each week, per an Axios analysis of city data.
- Leaders say current EMS resources would've been strained by the influx of World Cup visitors and any resulting increase in emergency calls if it hadn't hired the ambulance service.
How it works: The city is paying Acadian Ambulance Service for 50 ambulances that will be on call for medical emergencies during the World Cup.
- Acadian ambulance crews will also assist with medical emergencies at FIFA's official sites and will respond to medical emergencies across the city.
- City of Houston paramedics will be staged at the stadium, Fan Fest and other fan activities, including the Dutch Oranje Fanwalk, for any medical issues. They'll also be in firehouses across the city, ready to respond to everyday 911 calls.
What they're saying: "We look at what can occur, what resources we have to ensure the safety of everyone, and if we have the right coverage, not only for the event but for the rest of the city," HFD chief Thomas Muñoz said at a World Cup press conference Tuesday.
- "That contract ... give[s] us that capacity to have that sort of protection both at NRG, at Fan Fest, or allow us to provide the normal day to day operations that we do."
"This is not just for FIFA, as I continue to emphasize," Mayor John Whitmire said Tuesday. "The coverage of EMS [was] dangerously low when I was sworn in."
- "We don't want to wake up and have a storm or other events and not be fully prepared."
What's next: Thousands of fans will soon arrive in Houston for seven matches starting June 14 with Germany and Curaçao.