MAYOR CARLISLE ANNOUNCES AMBULANCE UNIT FOR EWA BEACH

(Monday, July 9, 2012)—Mayor Peter Carlisle today announced that an ambulance unit is now stationed in Ewa Beach to better serve neighborhoods most impacted by recent hospital closures.

“Protecting public health and safety are among our top concerns, and basing an ambulance in Ewa Beach will allow paramedics to respond more rapidly to emergencies in the area,” Carlisle said.

The ambulance will be housed in existing City-owned space at the Ewa Villages Golf Course main building.

Extra ambulance units were made available to service Ewa Beach and surrounding communities immediately after the hospital closures took effect. The City had already planned to station a unit in Ewa Beach within a few years to better serve the area’s growing population, and the closures brought a new sense of urgency and additional funding from the Legislature.

“This is happening at the right place, at the right time and was possible because of a collaborative effort between the City and State,” said Dr. James Ireland, Director of the City’s Emergency Services Department.

Carlisle thanked all Emergency Medical Services personnel for their hard work every day to protect Honolulu’s residents and visitors, and especially thanked the City’s Department of Enterprise Services for renovating the space for the ambulance.

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Media contact: Louise Kim McCoy, Mayor’s Office, 768-7798.