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Engine and Truck company's respond to many medical calls for a many of reasons. If it is a basic life support call, such as a fall or broken arm, the men and women on the Engines and Truck are trained Emergency Medical Technicians and have the skills to manage this type of situation.
If it is a more serious incident calling for Advanced Life Support, such as a cardiac, then Engines and Truck respond for the additional manpower. The more serious the call the more personnel are needed to properly manage the situation . In addition to an Engine or Truck on serious calls, an Advanced Life Support
Ambulance is dispatched. Since there are more Engines and Trucks than Ambulances
the likelihood that a Engine or Truck will arrive first is increased. If someone is not breathing and does not have a heart beat, the EMS system must place someone on the scene in four to six minute for that patient to have a chance of resuscitation. So Engines and Truck companies are dispatched to place trained personnel on the scene as soon as possible on a serious incident.
All three Engine Companies in the City are ALS capable, with a paramedic assigned to each, they carry the same medical equipment as the Ambulances crews. So they are capable of handling even the most serious cases by themselves.
So the reason Engine and Truck companies show up on medical scenes to provide the best care possible for the citizens and visitors of Pineville.
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