Amarillo Fire Department call volume triples in recent years, majority are EMS calls

AMARILLO, Texas (KFDA) - The Amarillo Fire Department says its call volume has tripled over the years.

The majority of those calls aren’t fire related, but for Emergency Medical Services (EMS).

The department says it’s come a long way, now being one of the primary providers of pre-hospital care in the area.

AFD operates several engines, staffed with trained paramedics and EMTs.

“We’ve got 17 frontline trucks, running out of 13 stations and to be able to have the same equipment as the transporting agency, our partner in this AMR that just allows us to have more of a seamless transition when we’re doing the patient transfer from our patient care to getting them loaded up on an ambulance,” said Jason Mays, fire chief, AFD.

Also, every front line truck is now equipped with Lifepak15, which they say is a major piece of equipment.

It allows them to access what’s going on with the patient and make interventions.

Before, first responders would have to wait to intervene.

“Which, you know, was frustrating as a provider knowing there’s something we could do, but we have to wait until that ambulance gets there, so the opportunities that it’s presented us to be able to be more aggressive with those interventions is great,” said Jeff Harbin, district chief of EMS, AFD.

The department says it continues to train additional members to add more paramedics.

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