Westport Receiving 2 New State-of-the-Art Ambulances

WESTPORT, CT - The town's award-winning Emergency Medical Service division this week will receive a pair of new, state-of-the-art ambulances, First Selectman Jim Marpe announced.

Each one carries a price tag above $200,000 and were manufactured by PL Custom Emergency Vehicles of Manasquan, NJ. Town officials will publicly present the vehicles during a ceremony at 11:30 a.m. Thursday in front of Town Hall.

Both vehicles were purchased by the Westport Volunteer Emergency Medical Service, the 501(c)(3) not-for-profit charitable organization that serves the emergency response needs of the community. The new vehicles will replace two older ambulances which are being retired.

Westport Volunteer Emergency Medical Service is staffed with 100 dedicated and trained volunteers who, along with professional town personnel, operate Westport EMS ambulances and respond to more than 2,400 911 emergency and other medical calls per year. The unit is largely funded by donations from residents and local businesses, and it is the recipient of the prestigious EMS Magazine National Gold Award.

"From recruiting and training members in life saving techniques, to purchasing ambulances, Paramedic SUV’s, and all of the necessary state of the art equipment (radios, cardiac monitors/defibrillators, etc,) and medical supplies contained on the vehicles, Westport Volunteer EMS strives to assure that Westport residents, along with all those who work or pass through here, receive the best in pre-hospital emergency medical care," said officials in a statement.

Additionally, WVEMS also runs an Explorer Post for high school students, and offers public education by providing CPR classes as well as Emergency Medical Technician and Emergency Medical Responder courses.

Photo: The two new ambulances purchased by Westport Volunteer Emergency Medical Service in 2016. Photo credit: PL Custom Emergency Vehicles