Lucas residents in need of emergency medical attention will no longer rely on the Wylie fire department as the city of Lucas now has its own ambulance.

Before April 1, Lucas paramedics, partnering with the Southeast Collin County E.M.S. Coalition, could give only basic life support (BLS) without the use of life-saving drugs. With the new ambulance, emergency patients can receive advanced life support while being transported to the nearest hospital.

“It’s going to make things a whole lot easier,” Lucas Fire Chief Jim Kitchens said. “It’s also going to be a lot busier too, we’re going to be able to give emergency treatment to more people. Instead of a response time of 8 to 20 minutes for those living in the farthest parts of Lucas, our basic time will be cut to around 3 to 7 or 8 minutes.”

The new rescue vehicle has already been put to good use. At a baseball practice just two days after the ambulance was put into action, coach Ryan Cox called 911 when one of the players had a seizure.

“It took Lucas three minutes from when they were dispatched to get to us,” athletic trainer Jonathan Stinson said. “They pulled the ambulance right inside the indoor, right up to where we were. We’ve already seen that it’s phenomenally better than the other system. Previously they would have to come out, and then an ambulance was brought in from somewhere else, and it took so much more time.”

Thanks to the new ambulance and the first responders, the emergency was taken care of quickly and the player recovered.

“There’s only so much you can do,” Stinson said. “And it was good that this really major thing that happened, that they had an ambulance, to where it could get here in three minutes. That will help Lovejoy immensely, having that quick response. It can make the difference between life and death.”

In addition to the ambulance now in service, another will also arrive by the end of the month.

“It’s going to be great for the whole town,” Kitchens said. “For around 15 years until now, we’ve used the other system through the Southeast Coalition, but this is a lot better. The citizens will get a lot more personal care than they’ve ever gotten before.”