West Fargo fire starts EMS bike unit
Wednesday, May 01, 2019 4:14 p.m. CDT by Paul Jurgens, KFGO
WEST FARGO, ND (KFGO) - The West Fargo Fire Dept. has launched the new emergency medical services (EMS) bike program. The department will use custom mountain bikes, equipped with medical supplies and trained responders, to provide life-saving support at major events like Cruise Night and West Fest. This is the first fire EMS bike program in North Dakota.
“With the unprecedented growth of West Fargo and size of community events continuing to grow it was necessary for us to find a way to provide fast medical care in the most efficient and effective way possible,” said Chief Dan Fuller. “These bikes will allow us to quickly respond to incidents when crowds make it hard to move fast.”
Members of the bike program will utilize custom Trek FX3 bikes with lights, sirens and medical bags with typical trauma supplies, such as plastic and cloth tape, gloves, trauma scissors, tourniquets and chest compression kits. They will also complete training through the International Police Mountain Bike Association to learn bike maintenance, safety and strategies for responding safely and effectively on bikes.
The EMS bike team will be deployed in groups of four. Members must be certified emergency medical responders and have at least one emergency medical technician per team. The team will always patrol in pairs
The EMS bike program was made possible through donations from Toppers Car Club, Scheels and Bell Bank.
West Fargo Fire worked closely with the St. Louis Park Fire, Minnesota Department to develop the program.