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Comment by chrisseaton | Hacker News Reader

Why does the fire department respond to a medical emergency?

US fire departments are classed as "first responders", with a service level requirement that they normally arrive on-scene within minutes, usually long before police/ambulance/etc.

It makes sense to staff FDs with EMTs and give them responsibility for responding to all manner of emergencies (medical included), since they are already the first responders.

Often this is because many firefighters are also certified EMTs. So sometimes, it’s just easier to have the fire department respond.

That being said, I live in a rural state where this makes sense. I cannot imagine the crowded streets of SF are good for this.

Because “fire department” is the label put on the general purpose non-law-enforcement emergency response unit of most local governments.

Often times fire engines and trucks are staffed with 3 EMTs and at least 1 Paramedic. Then the ambulance with 2 paramedics, or 1 paramedic 1 EMT arrives.

It's all about level of care. Overkill for a twisted ankle sure but crucial for a cardiac or other life threatening event.

They do in most countries actually. There's a lot of similarity in the skills you need.

Don't most countries have a separate ambulance/paramedic service for medical emergencies? Certainly in the UK we have fire, police and ambulance as the three emergency services, one (or more) of which will be sent by the dispatcher following a 999 emergency call. I think most commonwealth countries are the same.

Because Ambulances tend not to carry the kind of heavy duty cutting equipment required to get people out of mangled cars

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