The new ambulance, Medic 2, will for a short time be used as a spare so the department can take Medic 1 out of service for maintenance, Fire Chief Antony Cumo said. Medic 2 will officially be in service full time in 2026 after the department hires additional firefighters through the recently awarded Safer Grant in early 2026 to staff it.

Lt. Josh Coil noted that the second ambulance is important for the department to provide adequate service to the city’s residents and mutual aid for surrounding communities and prevent them from having to hand off ambulance calls to private services.

Last year the department dropped over 150 calls to other agencies due to a shortage of staff and only having one ambulance. With four additional firefighters, one to bring the department to full staffing and three hired under the Safer Grant, the department will be able to run two ambulances full time and not have to hand off calls when one is already out on a call.

Medic 2 is a remounted ambulance which is the box from an older ambulance remounted onto a new chassis at a cost of $204,000 with $37,000 coming from the city’s Opioid Settlement Funds. The box has had a major overhaul done to it with inside redone with new cabinets, floors and wiring.

Lieutenants Josh Coil and Shawn Fiffick stand with Medic 2, the East Liverpool Fire Department’s new ambulance. (Photo by Kristi R. Garabrandt)

Cumo said residents should see reduced response times or delays due to an ambulance out of service while delivering a patient to the hospital and a reduction in the need for mutual aid for medical calls when both ambulances are in service.

“I want to thank all of city council and the administration for making this happen,” Cumo said. “It really shows that they are making the safety of the city a priority.”

kgarabrandt@mojonews.com

Lt. Josh Coil shows the inside of the box that was recently overhauled and put on a new chassis to build Medic 2, the East Liverpool Fire Department’s new ambulance. (Photo by Kristi R. Garabrandt)