AMARILLO, Texas (KVII) — Amarillo firefighters are expanding their lifesaving capabilities by adding another paramedic engine at Station 12, part of a broader effort to meet rising demand for medical calls that now make up nearly 70% of all responses.
Engine 12 is the fourth paramedic engine in Amarillo. Jason Love, public information officer for the Amarillo Fire Department, said fire trucks are paramedic-ready, but a paramedic engine goes further by ensuring advanced life support.
“If we get a, let’s say, a serious cardiac medical call, these guys have more equipment and more tools and more medications that they can actually begin treatments earlier. If AMR has an extended scene time or something like that, so that what they can expect is quicker responses for more critical emergencies than what maybe they would have expected in the past,” Love said…