Glasgow Rescue, Company 11 first responders, you're needed ... 53-year-old male subject having chest pains, previous history of heart attacks ... Rockbridge EOC 12:34.
— Dispatcher, Rockbridge Emergency Operations Center
When emergencies happen during the day, people dial 911 without a second thought.
In the face of a loved-one's injury or illness, residents depend on the trained Emergency Medical Technician who shows up on the front stoop carrying splints and bandages. But as five minutes sometimes turn into 15 and there's no ambulance in sight, residents grow rapidly more upset.
They misunderstand, perhaps, the cause of the delay is a critically
low number of trained volunteers available to answer daylight calls.
Glasgow Rescue, Company 11 first responders, you're needed ...
53-year-old male having chest pains ... he has taken three nitro
[pills] ... Rockbridge EOC, 12:39
Without hesitation, every volunteer EMT will say that helping people is the number one reason he became a squad member. And in the next breath, if he's a member of one of the smaller squads in the county, he'll say how burned out he's feeling.
"It's frustrating when people say, `What took you so long?'" said Glasgow squad captain Lisa Rogers.
Glasgow Rescue, Company 11, respond, call pending, the pain has gotten worse ... the pain has gotten a lot worse ... Rockbridge EOC, 12:44
But volunteer rescue workers have daytime jobs they can't always leave. Some have children and no one to watch them if they respond to a call at 1 a.m. Others may be unwilling to volunteer after 5 p.m.
Rockbridge County squads began to ponder the need for paid members last December to answer the bevy of emergency calls during daylight hours. It's an issue with a growing number of volunteer rescue squads and fire departments across the U.S. and it's an unpopular option for most local squad members.
"I don't ever want to go paid," Rogers said.
358 [Robert Hickman, a Glasgow squad member] to EOC ... I'm on the scene of this call. No response to my building yet. Can you tone Glasgow and go ahead and contact Lexington and get a medic unit started this way, please?
Glasgow Life Saving and First Aid Crew has 15 active rescue squad members covering an estimated 40 square miles. That membership is up from just a few months ago mainly because Rogers, newly elected squad captain, personally contacted everyone who'd been involved with the squad over the last few years and a number of members have returned.
In addition, two junior members recently turned 18 and were able to become senior members. There is also a small group of associate members who help out with fund-raising.
"I can say I'm proud to be on the Glasgow squad again," Rogers said.
Members responded to 716 calls for assistance or medical emergencies in 2000. They drove over 33,000 miles.
Rescue 1, Glasgow 358 has requested medic assistance for a 53-year-old male, chest pains, history of heart attack, has taken two nitro ... 12:46 hours
Medic 10 responding, 12:46
Firefighters like Trent Roberts, also known as Medic 10, must fill in when rescue workers are unavailable. The cooperation between the fire departments and rescue squads has not always been smooth, but has turned into a welcome working relationship for both sides.
"We're here for the same job. If I pulled up [to the rescue squad building] in a red truck, and they needed help on a white one, I got on the white one," Roberts said several months ago, referring to the white ambulances.
More and more, firefighters are receiving training as "first responders," answering medical emergency calls when an EMT from a rescue squad is not immediately available. In outlying areas, a fire station could be closer to the emergency and a firefighter could respond more quickly, said Steve Reese, director of Rockbridge Emergency Operations Center.
"I think it really enhances the relationship between the rescue squad and the fire department," said Lexington fire chief Robert Foresman.
358: I'm on the scene. Set off company two's [Glasgow Fire
Department] tone, see if possibly 223 or 226 [two firefighters] can
get in our building, can bring me a truck to this location, please
Glasgow is not alone in its need for assistance from others. Along with help from trained firefighters, Lexington Lifesaving and First Aid Crew has cadet members from Virginia Military Institute and Washington and Lee University students to enhance its personnel during daylight hours. An auspicious arrangement — when school is in session.
It wasn't so long ago, April, 1999, that the Lexington squad considered asking its City Council for the funds to hire three paid staff to answer daytime calls seven days a week.
"The number of personnel available to us on a regular basis during daylight hours has reached a crisis point," said then squad captain Thresa Moore at that time.
Buena Vista, assistance is needed ... squad members on the scene requesting further assistance, 53-year-old male with chest pains, history of heart attacks ... 12:50
Medic 10, do you have a possible ETA [estimated time of arrival]?
Let's say 10 to 12 minutes, EOC
City officials had several ideas in response to the Lexington squad's request. City Manager T. Jon Ellestad suggested funding two positions to cover daylight hours Monday through Friday. He discussed contracting with Stonewall Jackson Hospital for assistance.
"Another idea I've thought about is hiring a couple of new city employees who would be hired on the condition that they be members of the rescue squad responsible for answering daylight calls," Ellestad said at the time.
A few weeks later, just before the issue of hiring two personnel for a daylight shift was to be discussed by city council, Ellestad met with Moore, and squad members Troy Potter and Brad Zollman. It was agreed that the request would be dropped from the budget, but council later proposed $10,000 to assist the squad in recruitment or training of new members.
226 [firefighter Mike Watts] en route to squad building ... 12:53
Buena Vista rescue 42 en route [to scene] ... 12:53
Glasgow rescue respond ... 53-year-old male, chest pains ... second due [Buena Vista squad] has been toned and they are en route, Rockbridge EOC, 12:54
Representatives of the county's five rescue squads meet monthly as the Rockbridge Emergency Rescue Group. In January, this group of squad captains and others took the unusual step of buying an advertisement in The News-Gazette in search of additional volunteers.
The squads got little response.
The most pressing need is for area residents willing to train as EMTs. No prior training is required, and all training is paid for. Time needed for the training can be substantial, however.
"Retirees are welcome," the ad reads. "You're never too old to save a life."
Glasgow rescue 49 en route ... 12:56
Medic 10 on location ... 12:59. Be also advised, Buena Vista and Glasgow rescue squads are on location
Rescue squad members are told in training that once they arrive on the scene, the emergency is over.
A member's rigorous, ongoing training, dedication to helping others and a basic addiction to the adrenaline rush means a squad member is concentrated on the task at hand. While there may still be trauma, the emergency is over because someone who knows what needs to be done is on the scene.
Medic 10 en route to Stonewall [Jackson Hospital] ... 13:06 hours
Volunteers can relieve some of the pressure on EMTs by helping to clean the trucks and squad building, completing state-required forms, building and lawn maintenance and fund-raising activities. This enables the medical technicians to focus on what they do best — saving lives.
"There's more things to do than the medical part of it," said Reese, director of the EOC and a firefighter and former rescue squad member. "You can train in EVOC [Emergency Vehicle Operator Course] and drive. Maybe help out with administrative stuff.
"If you have the time and you're interested in making a commitment, at least give it a try."
Medic 10, we're out at Stonewall ... 13:23
Glasgow 49 in service returning [to the squad building]. Thank you all and Lexington rescue for your assistance ... 13:25.