Ambulances prepared to work in blizzard conditions

OKLAHOMA CITY – While most folks get to stay inside, there are essential personnel who still have to get to work; that includes paramedics.

EMSA officials tell us they’ve equipped their units with everything from salt and ice to snow shovels.

Paramedics need to get to their patients fast and even with their skilled driving, crews sometimes have to leave behind their ambulance and hike to their patient.

“The snow plows and things can’t get everywhere,” EMSA’s Tyler Whirefire said. “We have snow routes and we have to get off those snow routes to get to the patients a lot of times. We can get stuck sometimes.”

In addition to the ambulance preps, EMSA also has to get creative with staffing during a winter storm like this, putting up employees in nearby hotels so they can get to work, despite the inclement conditions.