New ambulance will need equipping
Staff writer
A new county ambulance, expected to arrive March 10, will need to be equipped and inspected before it will be seen on the road.
The ambulance, ordered in 2022 during the COVID-19 epidemic, cost $212,488 and is equipped with an infrared lighting system that sanitizes the ambulance after it is used.
It has a bigger truck chassis than the county’s other ambulances, is equipped with four-wheel drive, and has a diesel engine.
The ambulance will come with decals that identify it as Marion County Emergency Medical Service. The county will have to add a radio and stock it with medical supplies and equipment.
Companies that sell ambulances ordinarily outfit the interiors with cabinets and storage compartments, according to James Reed, operations manager for Kansas Board of Emergency Medical Services.
The ambulance must be certified with the state before it is placed into service and used.
Ambulances are inspected annually as well as before they begin being used, Reed said.
The county recently bought land north of Peabody to build a third ambulance station. It has not yet been decided when construction will begin and what ambulances will be stationed there.