Officials in New Jersey want to investigate whether the death of a 91-year-old woman who died of cardiac arrest could have been saved at the hospital without the days-long lane closings from Fort Lee, CNN reported.
Vilma Oleri told WABC that she isn't certain the traffic played a large part in the death of her mother, Florence Genova, 91.
"I really don't think so, no, I really don't. I think she was 91 and really believe in my heart that she was already gone when the ambulance got (to her house)," Oleri said.
However, a state senator is not taking the possibility lightly and is requesting that federal prosecutors look into Genova's death.
"This crosses a line that is rarely crossed: People's lives were in danger," said New Jersey state Sen. Ray Lesniak. "Endangering people's lives -- that's not politics. That's why the U.S. attorneys have to get involved."
The investigation would also explore whether the lane closings were an act of revenge by Governor Chris Christie, a Republican, on Mayor Mark Sokolich of Fort Lee, a Democrat, for not endorsing him during last year's election.
On the second day of the lane closings in September, Fort Lee EMS coordinator Paul Favia wrote a letter to the mayor, telling him the traffic was "causing unnecessary delays for emergency services."
Favia claimed that response time was doubled due to the traffic and mentioned Genova's cardic arrest as well.
"The result of this call was a cardiac arrest, which was pronounced at Englewood Hospital," Favia wrote. "I would also like it noted that the paramedics were delayed due to heavy traffic on Fort Lee Road and had to meet the ambulance en route to the hospital instead of on the scene."
In total, Favia wrote to the mayor that four delayed emergency responses took place on September 9 and September 10.
"I am bringing this to your attention so that perhaps some type of modification of change can be made to this new traffic pattern, so we can possibly avoid any further delayed response times to emergencies throughout the borough," he wrote.
Favia has not commented on his letter.
