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Members of the Easton Area Emergency Squad are gearing up for the arrival of a new emergency vehicle made possible in part by a $36,000 contribution from Lafayette.
The $74,000 ambulance will replace a vehicle badly damaged in an accident this year. A total of $5,125 was contributed by the Easton Lions Club, Binney & Smith, Order of Fleas, Easton Housing Authority, Concordia Mannechor, Ashland Chemical, Martin Cohen Family Trust, Liberty Hose, and F.O.P. Lodge 17.
“The purchase of an ambulance is long overdue. We have not purchased one since 1998, so everyone around here is doing cartwheels,” says John Evans, operations director of the Easton Emergency Squad.
The vehicle will allow emergency workers to better help those in need, as it makes all equipment highly accessible. Additionally, the ambulance is equipped with a built-in child seat to accommodate uninjured children whose parents have been hurt. This is a new feature not available in the squad's existing vehicles.
Lafayette undertook the project in March after being contacted by Ron Kummer, chair of the board of directors of the Easton Emergency Squad. The squad provides routine coverage at intercollegiate athletic events and many other special events on campus and responds to medical emergencies, says Hugh W. Harris, Lafayette's director of public safety.
“We have a wonderful working relationship with the squad,” Harris adds. “In fact we have recently enhanced radio communication between the public safety office, campus police officers, and ambulance personnel to make the relationship even more effective.”
The Easton Emergency Squad hopes to purchase another emergency vehicle next year and is planning a fundraising campaign led by its board of directors to help reach this goal.