In early summer, there were as many city ambulances out of service on some days as were ready for the road.

In one, a Queens man died of a heart attack on July 15 while waiting 42 minutes for a city ambulance.

An NYP1) car and a city ambulance were pulled up on the sidewalk.

Because volunteers are under no obligation to respond, she said dispatchers will continue to monitor such calls in case a city ambulance is still needed.

Shortly after the ambulance left, another city ambulance showed up, responding to the call.

It was not a city ambulance, or a private hospital ambulance.

Emergency rooms remained open, but the hospital instructed city ambulances to divert patients to other medical centers.

At the same time, two other complaints were disclosed about the response time of city ambulances.

But in an emergency, their ability to help may depend entirely on how rapidly city ambulances respond.

Instead, a city ambulance was dispatched from over ten miles away, and Summerville died waiting for aid.