Keep your eyes out for a new emergency response vehicle on the streets of Gilbert.

In an effort to maintain response standards, www.gilbertaz.gov/fire began its pilot of a low-acuity vehicle at the start of this month. This vehicle will respond to medical assistance and emergency calls, and this 12-month pilot program will gauge the effectiveness of a two-person response vehicle, compared to a fire truck, for less critical medical needs throughout the community In this smaller vehicle, there will be two first responders-one paramedic and one emergency medical technician (EMT). This two-person crew setup hopes to be more efficient while maintaining a four-minute response time and increasing the availability of the four-person fire crews to meet the most critical emergency calls.

The pilot program was developed using historical dispatch data, which helped the department identify where, when and how frequently the less critical calls were occurring

To learn more about this program, visit www.gilbertaz.gov/fire.