Photo Courtesy of Nutley
NUTLEY, NJ — The township of Nutley, with the help of Essex County Executive Joseph N. DiVincenzo Jr., unveiled its new ambulance, a state-of-the-art emergency medical transport vehicle with communication response abilities that are second to none, in April. With emergency medical services now falling under the purview of the Nutley Fire Department, the need for a multipurpose ambulance became a priority.
“What precipitated the need for this vehicle was that we were now going to have (firefighters) that were going to be responding as EMTs along with our former squad members,” Public Safety Director Alphonse Petracco said. “The fact that this vehicle is able to equip fire gear along with EMS equipment gives us the ability to respond to emergencies that in the past may have required multiple vehicles. So if we’re on an EMS call and we need to respond to a working fire, we would have our gear on board. This truck is the most universal truck for our needs.”
Nutley has been the hazardous materials team for Essex County for almost two decades. In order for the township to become an EMS provider, the state requires the department to have two ambulances. After Nutley purchased one at no cost to the taxpayers, Petracco and Deputy Chief Paul Cafone reached out to the county to see if it would help fund a second ambulance. County officials responded and said that they would completely cover the cost of the new vehicle under a shared services agreement.
“Joe DiVincenzo Jr. has always been a great friend to Nutley,” Petracco said. “This is just another example of how he and the county do whatever they can to serve their communities. We are incredibly grateful for their generosity.”
Petracco is excited about being able to expand the department’s services to best serve the township.
“As the agency that acquired the squad, it’s such a positive move for us and it just furthers our capabilities and abilities to offer the best emergency services to our residents,” Petracco said.
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