New Ambulance Bus Can Sleep 28

The township has a new ambulance bus to assist residents during emergencies.

The 42-foot long vehicle is like a hospital on wheels: up to 28 people can rest or sleep in it. It can supply oxygen to each person for up to three days. It also comes equipped with a defibrillator, intravenous units, and other life-saving and emergency equipment.

“It’s an amazing vehicle,” said Stu Steinberg, president of the Wayne Memorial First Aid Squad.

Local taxes were not used to purchase the vehicle. The state purchased it with funds from a grant from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security; each of New Jersey’s 21 county EMS task forces received one. The squad is a member of the Passaic County Emergency Medical Services Task Force and often receives calls to assist other EMS squads.

“We’re honored to be the town to receive it,” Steinberg said. “We take a great deal of pride in the service we provide to the residents of Wayne.”

The bus will be used primarily in response to incidents involving several casualties and to help evacuate a large number of people from a specific building, such as a nursing home, or in a part of town that’s been severely flooded. It will also be used to treat EMS workers injured during an emergency.

The bus will also be used when the squad responses to a large emergency in Passaic or another nearby county.

Steinberg said he did not know what the bus's value is.