DID YOU KNOW: thats Wrightwood’s paramedic program claims the honor of hosting the first paramedics to operate within the county. The history becomes muddled and hard to decipher because Wrightwood’s initial program involved paid-call firefighters who worked full-time for fire departments in Los Angeles County. #Wrightwood officially has some of the first paramedics accredited by what was then called San Bernardino County Health (now Inland Counties Emergency Medical Agency, or #ICEMA). Chuck Blakeslee, credited as the first paramedic in Wrightwood, received his initial training at #HarborGeneralHospital in #LosAngeles and was certified there in 1972. According to FIREWIRE’s research, Chuck is the second paramedic accredited by ICEMA. Dave Faust, credited as the second paramedic in Wrightwood, also received his training at Harbor General and was certified in Los Angeles County in 1973. To the best #FIREWIRE can determine Dave is ICEMA paramedic number four. In 1974 Wrightwood Fire Chief Bob Hedden decided he wanted to attempt to staff paramedics to serve the town. Chief Hedden was committed to providing ALS service to Wrightwood and asked Blakeslee and Faust to operate as paramedics while serving their community as paid-call firefighters. The first entry for Faust and Blakeslee responding to calls is found in an old station log on Feb. 2, 1975. Following that date, there are regular entries for Faust and Blakeslee “accompanying” patients during transports. They were alerted to a call by a loud emergency horn that would sound through the town. It would sound once for a medical aid, and five times for a fire. They would respond an ambulance and respond to the address. Jim Wilkins (father of current #SBCoFD Captain Josh Wilkins) was a career firefighter/EMT for Wrightwood in these early years (he would become a paramedic in around 1977) and assisted in the grassroots beginning of this program as well. It is safe to assume that paramedic service was being provided in Wrightwood and the surrounding area by March of 1975. Community groups came together to help purchase equipment and put together a compensation package. The Wrightwood fire commissioners approved a three month trial period in December of 1974 which stipulated that Blakeslee and Faust would receive $75 per month and $4 per hour for each run. It is important to recognize that Chief Hedden is the individual who spearheaded the movement to begin a paramedic program. “This would not have happened without Bob Hedden,” said Blakelee and Faust. “It was his vision. It would not have started without him.”
Posted on: Sun, 21 Dec 2014 17:00:00 +0000
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