9/2/10: Laurali Noteman
Thre of our "seasoned" EMTs. Dilworth Perkins, Shauna Cram and Bill Canning.
Geographically Kane County covers 4,373 square miles. We have a fairly stable population of approximately 6,125 with an influx reaching beyond 3,000,000 visitors annually. Those totals don’t include our neighbors to the south, along the Arizona Strip or the Grand Canyon, but guess who is always there and always ready to help those within our boundaries?
You got it! Our Emergency Medical Technicians. Fifty-one trained and qualified individuals virtually volunteer their "time off" to make differences in family, friends or strangers lives. We have 3 EMTs located in Alton, two of whom respond with the Cedar Mountain crew, and one who runs with the Valley ambulance. There are 5 responding in Big Water, and 5 on the Cedar Mountain team to cover residents and travelers. Fredonia currently has 5 individuals who respond to the Kanab ambulance calls, while Kanab EMTs total 25. The Valley response team consist of 8 plus the Alton EMT.
These 51 team members are truly extraordinary individuals. The majority of them have "real jobs", family commitments, community commitments and /or church jobs. Some serve in law enforcement, (their other job) and some pull double duty as volunteers in their respective community fire departments.
Kane County Hospital does pay on a per run basis or for transports but that sum doesn’t cover any lost wages the individual may incur so most run the ambulance in their off hours. The hospital does host an educational trek once a year for training which the EMTs enjoy while learning and rubbing shoulders with their state counterparts. But they train all year long to keep us safe or help when the chips are really down in our lives. Sometimes they are simply there in the background for a "just in case" situation.
Our Emergency Medical responders are there in the middle of the night, heat of the summer or when the temperatures drop and driving becomes an extreme hazard. Thanks you make the difference in hundreds of lives and their families each year. We appreciate your time, your talent and your dedication.
