A leaked FDNY memo shows dispatchers are forbidden from saying “Ebola” over the radio. Photo credit: Getty Images
A copy of a FDNY memo leaked to the New York Post shows emergency dispatchers have been told not to use the word “Ebola” during radio dispatches to emergency responders.
The memo, dated Oct. 3, instead tells dispatchers to use the new code “fever-travel” or “FT” to alert EMS workers if a patient is believes to have returned from Western Africa, and is potentially suffering from the deadly virus.
“At no point shall a dispatcher transmit over the radio any message containing the word “Ebola” or related terminology. The only acceptable phrasiology (sic) related to these call types is the above message,” the memo reads.
Radio channels can be monitored by the public, using a police scanner or a smartphone app.
