NORTH BABYLON, N.Y. 鈥� A volunteer fire chief has been suspended after a viral video captured him yelling profanities at a 10-year-old girl during an emergency call.
The incident occurred on Aug. 4 when North Babylon Fire Chief Peter Alt responded to a call involving the child. As first responders loaded the 10-year-old into the ambulance, a concerned neighbor recorded Alt shouting at her, the reported.
鈥淪hut the f**k up! It鈥檚 like this with you every f**king week!鈥� Alt yells.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 want to go! I want to go home!鈥� the girl responds.
鈥淪hut your mouth!鈥� Alt snaps back, as the ambulance doors close.
| DOWNLOAD: What paramedics want in 2025
On Aug. 5, the North Babylon Volunteer Fire Company announced Alt鈥檚 suspension in a , stating an investigation is underway.
鈥淭he Fire Company is presently reviewing all of its training, policies and procedures and will determine if further training with respect to responding to emergency calls is required. The Fire Company does not condone this behavior and deems it unacceptable,鈥� the agency said.
The girl鈥檚 grandmother, who wasn鈥檛 home at the time, said she was devastated by the video.
鈥淢aybe it was a blessing I wasn鈥檛 there,鈥� she told . The child had become overwhelmed after losing her phone, prompting her mother to call the police for help.
Neighbors who know the family were disturbed by the incident.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 not how you treat people,鈥� neighbor Mark Simms said. 鈥淚鈥檇 be outraged if he spoke to my kids like that,鈥� Simms noted first responders have been at the home before, but never with such aggression.
In addition to the fire company鈥檚 internal investigation, the Town of Babylon is conducting its own review of the incident.
What would an active bystander do?
Chief Alt is surrounded by other first responders who don鈥檛 silence him or move him away as he berates the child. Active bystandership, the subject of this popular article 鈥�Why EMS needs active bystandership now,鈥� empowers individuals to act when they see potential risk or harm. Have you had a similar encounter during your career? How did you react? How could your service use this video for training on active bystandership?
