Ramona Fire Department Gets New Ambulance; Water Board Shows Gratitude

A grant was accepted, an ambulance picked out and now Ramona Fire Department/Cal Fire is in possession of a brand-new emergency vehicle that will benefit the community.

Ramona Fire Station 80 showed off the new truck, which was picked up that morning, at the April 23 Ramona Municipal Water District board meeting.

The new vehicle is a Ford F-450 Lifeline Emergency Vehicle Type I 167-foot Superliner Module Ambulance, purchased for just under $210,000 by a no-matching grant given to the district from the Barona Band of Mission Indians and Sycuan Band of Kumeyaay Nation back in July of 2012.

Battalion Chief Burke Kremensky said the ambulance won't be ready to use for another month after Station 80 will stock the emergency vehicle with necessities and load it with the appropriate gear.

The town's fire department currently has three ambulances: two front-lines and one reserve. With the addition of this new ambulance, one of the front-line vehicles will go into reserve and the current ambulance in reserve will be auctioned off, with money from that going back into the RMWD general fund, Kremensky said.

Firefighters, engineers and paramedics showed the board the new ambulance at Tuesday's meeting, after which the board unanimously approved to adopt a resolution of appreciation to both Barona Band of Mission Indians and Sycuan Band of Kumeyaay Nation for the grant monies that made the new ambulance available.