VIRGINIA BEACH RESCUE SQUAD INC
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Mission Statement
We, the Virginia Beach Volunteer Rescue Squad, serve the 452,745 residents of the City of Virginia Beach as well as an additional 2.8 million tourists 24 hours a day, seven days a week. We are the largest of the ten rescue squads in the City of Virginia Beach that make up the Department of Emergency Medical Services, the largest volunteer-based rescue system in the United States and probably the world. Our main station is located in the oceanfront area of Virginia Beach and we have a satellite station in the Great Neck area. We have been offering free, high-quality, pre-hospital emergency medical care since our humble beginnings in 1952. Our squad of more than 180 all-volunteer members is funded by community donations and grants. These donations allow us to offer free pre-hospital emergency medical services to the citizens and visitors of Virginia Beach, support our operational vehicles and other equipment, conduct training and a free CPR program, provide advanced medical equipment, etc.
About This Cause
HISTORY In the early 1950s, “the village,” as most residents called Virginia Beach, was a sleepy little resort town stretching from Rudee Inlet to 49th Street. It had a population of just 10,000 and just about everybody knew everyone else. One cold December afternoon in 1951, a local woman was struck by a car near the corner of 24th Street and Atlantic Avenue. Attorney J. Peter Holland III found himself at the scene and called for an ambulance. Unfortunately, the Fire Department’s ambulance was disabled and couldn’t help. With nowhere to turn, Holland called the nearby Fort Story Army installation, but the dispensary was hesitant to send help since the injured person was not in the military. Holland persisted, and nearly an hour after his initial call, an ambulance from Fort Story responded to take the woman to Virginia Beach General Hospital, just three blocks away. Mr. Holland, thoroughly unsatisfied, rounded up some friends and discussed the urgent need for an active volunteer ambulance service in Virginia Beach. On May 1, 1952, the Princess Anne-Virginia Beach Rescue Squad, Inc., began operations with twenty-two charter members and one associate. It was the beginning of the long proud history of the Virginia Beach Volunteer Rescue Squad. Sixty-four years later, the “village” is now the large resort City of Virginia Beach, with a total area of 497 square miles, of which roughly half is land and half is water. It is the largest city in Virginia by total area and third-largest city in land area. The Virginia Beach oceanfront is the longest pleasure beach in the world and is a favorite tourist attraction. There are many waterways, rivers, lakes, and tributaries. It is mostly suburban but we have rural farm areas as well. There are two state parks, several long-protected beach areas, home of the largest military installations in the world, and is proud to have numerous historic attractions such as Cape Henry, the site of the first landing of the English colonists on April 26, 1607. VBVRS volunteers man our two rescue stations around the clock and are routinely called upon to staff other stations throughout the city as well. A typical 12-hour shift includes three or four VBVRS crews and ambulances on duty at our stations, with six to eight volunteer EMTs or paramedics, and possibly probationary EMT interns still in training. VBVRS responded to more than 14,000 calls last year, approximately one third of the 44,000 calls to the entire city of Virginia Beach. Thanks to your donation, pre-hospital emergency medical care is offered absolutely free to Virginia Beach residents and visitors! We offer the community services and equipment at no charge. These include $475 ambulance transport, $13,000 Lucas 2 chest compression system, $350 spinal immobilization equipment, $165 oxygen bottle and regulator, and professional and compassionate care by certified EMTs and Paramedics. Thanks to you, our crews have the life-saving equipment and training they need to answer every cry for help. AWARDS & ACCOMPLISHMENTS VBVRS and its members have won over 500 different awards and trophies, including 146 awards in World and State competitions; 129 trophies for District competitions; 35 Governmental awards, including from such diverse entities as the Departments of the Navy and the Army of the United States, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Commonwealth of VA, Governor's Awards, Proclamations by the City of VA Beach, Proclamations for Commendation by the Virginia General Assembly, and Tidewater Emergency Medical Services Council; and 22 Medal of Merit Honorees.