Seattle’s fire department has deployed artificial intelligence to redirect emergency 911 calls to a nurse line without tracking what happens to those callers, raising urgent questions about accountability after a woman died waiting more than 10 hours for an ambulance.

AI System Operates Without Oversight

Fire Chief Harold Scoggins confirmed to the Seattle City Council that dispatchers use an AI program to determine which 911 callers get transferred to a nurse line instead of receiving emergency response. While dispatchers make the final decision, the department admits it stops tracking calls once they leave the 911 system. The fire chief defended the technology as necessary due to limited resources and rising call volumes across the city.

Scoggins told council members the department faces serious capacity constraints. The system has only so many units available to respond to emergencies, forcing officials to find ways to manage an increasing number of calls. The AI tool was implemented as a solution to help triage lower-level medical calls away from emergency responders.

Council Demands Human Control

Councilmember Rob Saka challenged the department’s reliance on technology without sufficient human oversight throughout the process. He emphasized that while AI tools can provide valuable assistance, human decision-makers must remain involved from start to finish in emergency response situations. Public Safety Committee Chair Bob Kettle noted that residents care only about whether help arrives and how quickly, regardless of which agency handles the call.

The absence of tracking mechanisms means no one monitors how long callers wait after being transferred to the nurse line. This gap in oversight prevents the city from ensuring transferred callers receive timely care or knowing when the system fails.

Deadly Consequences Already Documented

The council’s scrutiny comes four years after 71-year-old Pamela Hogan died following a transfer to the nurse line in 2022. Hogan waited more than 10 hours for an ambulance that never arrived in time. The tragedy exposed critical flaws in Seattle’s emergency response system that appear to remain unaddressed despite the implementation of new technology meant to improve efficiency.

The case highlights fundamental questions about using artificial intelligence in life-or-death situations where accountability and response times directly impact survival. Without tracking transferred calls or measuring wait times, the city cannot verify whether its AI-assisted triage system saves lives or puts vulnerable residents at greater risk.