Princeton Packet
20 July, 1984

Rescue squad calls down for half year

In June the Princeton First Aid and Rescue Squad responded to a total of 116 calls, of which 99 were emergency dispatches, according to the squad’s June report.

This brings the half-yearly total of calls to 682 — about 2 percent below the first half-year total for 1983. Thirty-four of the calls were in Princeton Borough, 38 were in the township, and 44 were out of town (including 40 Lifemobile requests, standing by at the Princeton Hospital Fete, and an extrication drill at the “Twin W” First Aid Squad building).

Thirty-three of the total calls were handled as advanced life support (ALS) calls, usually with an intravenous line established and telemetry contact with Princeton Medical Center’s Emergency Room. Five of these ALS calls were attempts to resuscitate patients in cardiac arrest, although none of these attempts were successful, the report said.

Eleven of the ALS patients were markedly improved or had dangerous heart rhythms treated prior to arrival at the hospital. In addition, the treatment prior to arrival at the hospital. In addition, the treatment of 17 of these ALS patients was categorized as “precautionary measures.”

The squad’s vehicles were driven a total of 1,227 miles during the month and members put in a total of 539 hours on calls. Sixty-eight percent of the calls were handled by all-volunteer crews.