South Orange Rescue Squad holding 5K race fundraiser in May

SOUTH ORANGE — The South Orange Rescue Squad’s “Sound The Siren” 5k Run/Walk and Emergency Medical Service Open House is scheduled for May 4.

“This is the third year we are having it and its gotten bigger every year,” said Dan Cohen, a volunteer with the squad.

The race is scheduled to start at 9 a.m. with a kids fun run set to begin at 10 a.m. An open house, which will include food from Waffle de Lys, Dunkin, and other vendors, plus free face painting and other activities for kids, will follow.

The South Orange Rescue Squad is a non-profit organization that provides free 911 emergency medical care to the residents and visitors of South Orange. The
all-volunteer squad also provides free services to Maplewood and other surrounding communities, including Seton Hall University, Newark, Orange, and Irvington.

“We’ve found that a lot of people, even people who have lived here a long time, don’t realize we are volunteers,” Cohen said. “It’s good for people to understand who we are and what we do. We are supported by fundraising and donations.”

The squad, which has an operating budget of about $200,000 a year, operates three ambulances and a first responder SUV out of its headquarters at 62 Sloan St. Additionally, for special events the squad utilizes bicycles and an EMS utility cart.

There are 92 members of the squad and the ambulances are always staffed with a minimum of two emergency medical technicians and carry all of the available Basic Life Support medications and interventions allowed by the State of New Jersey.

All of the revenue of the Rescue Squad is received through voluntary tax deductible donations and fund raising events. All operating costs are covered by these contributions, including medical supplies, medical equipment, building upkeep, vehicle maintenance and ambulance purchases. The Township of South Orange provides the squad with vehicle insurance and fuel.

The South Orange Rescue Squad (SORS) was established in 1952 by a small number of local residents and business owners as an all-volunteer ambulance service.

In 2024, the squad answered 2,317 total calls with an average dispatch to on scene time of 5 minutes and 35 seconds, according to squad statistics. Of those calls, 1,166 calls were in South Orange, 366 were in Maplewood and 785 were to other towns including Newark, Irvington, Millburn, Livingston and West Orange.

In addition to emergency work, the squad completed 57 details, which means they were on hand, on standby, for things like football games, block parties,
scout visits.

Cohen started with the squad when he was a student at Columbia High School in 1991. He has a daughter, now 18, who started with the squad when she was a sophomore.

“The main thing, we want people to know we provide free care,” Cohen said. “We never bill for our services. Everything is funded by donations and fundraising events such as the 5K, which is why we are grateful it has become such a big event.”

  5K race, Rescue Squad, South Orange