The Idyllwild Fire Protection District (IFPD) received its new ambulance and has been running calls. Some members of the public contacted the newspaper regarding the ambulance running calls without being marked as an ambulance.
The ambulance does not have to pass a California Highway Patrol (CHP) inspection and be issued a permit before being in service because it is not operated by a private company.
The newspaper received confirmation from IFPD Chief Mark LaMont that the ambulance has been operational.
CHP Public Information Officer Matt Napier wrote, “To pass a CHP inspection, they [ambulances] are required to be easily identifiable as an ambulance. So technically, we wouldn’t issue a permit without this.” However, according to Napier, IFPD is not required to go through a CHP inspection because it is a public entity. Permits are issued and the process is based on the vehicle code.
LaMont responded to the newspaper’s request for clarification on its requirements.
“The agency does have to get a permit from county to operate outside the IFPD jurisdiction, such as mutual aid calls,” LaMont said. “That inspection is done by REMSA, which is required annually. The inspection recently came up and REMSA did an inspection on the new ambulance then. The ambulance is permitted with the sticker in the window.”
According to LaMont, the decal and lettering for the new ambulance had a backlog. Due to COVID-19, the agency did not receive the ambulance until later in 2020.
The agency will send the ambulance down for identification decals Wednesday, Jan. 20 should the company doing the decals not have additional backlog.