History

The City of Campbell Fire Department had four vehicles known as Rescue-25 over the years. The 1974 Chevrolet squad, the vehicle used by the first certified paramedics in Northern California, is the subject of the proposed restoration.

The Campbell Fire Department responded to emergency calls received from the Santa Clara County Communications Dispatch Center on the countywide radio system. Ring tones could be heard on VHF radio frequency 154.250 for each fire station across Santa Clara County. A mutual aid frequency, 154.280 was used for on scene radio traffic between engines from agencies responding to large fires. Campbell's first edition of Rescue 25 was a 1960 Ford F100 with a Standard Cab, three speed column shift transmission and an inline six cylinder engine. Public Works Department installed a siren, emergency lights and an air horn. The Ford had a snap down bed cover that concealed the rescue equipment. A basic first aid kit, oxygen resuscitator, fire extinguisher, hydraulic Porta-Power kit, Stokes Rescue Basket, ropes, chains and an engine compartment mounted welder. This version of Rescue 25 was in service at Station 1 from 1960 to 1969. It was usually staffed by two firefighters trained to the Red Cross First Aid level and responded on all fire and rescue calls in the City.

The second version of Rescue 25 was a 1969 1/2 ton Chevrolet Van. The emergency lighting and electronic siren were installed by Public Works Department. Kamper Kits, a local company owned by Elmo Lowder outfitting vans for camping, provided the custom made cabinets and shelves for the rescue tools and equipment. Firefighter Alan Lowder designed and installed most of the interior on his off duty time at the Kamper Kit shop on Kennedy Avenue in Campbell. This van was in service until the 1974 Chevy squad was placed in service in 1974.

In 1972 Los Gatos Community Hospital, on Pollard Road, began outfitting a Mobile Coronary Care Unit to respond on cardiac emergencies in the West Valley. The response area was in the overlapping jurisdictions of Campbell, Los Gatos, Saratoga and a small area covered by San Jose Fire Department. Dr Malcolm Parker invited Campbell Firefighter Rick Kincaid to canvass the responding fire departments and encourage the firefighters to upgrade their training levels to American Heart Association basic life support level. Rick approached Campbell Fire Chief Eugene Borden and was given the go ahead to begin fact finding. With this approval in hand, Rick approached firefighters at San Jose Fire Station 14 to compare their experiences on responses to calls involving the Los Gatos MCCU. Rick quickly came to the conclusion that additional advanced training would be necessary to provide a coordinated, improved response with the MCCU.

Some cross training was done at the Los Gatos Hospital Emergency Department, Cardiac Care Unit and in the fire stations with the MCCU staff driver and nurse. The firefighters took to the cross training eagerly and became more confident in their role with the cardiac field treatment being provided by the Los Gatos unit.

In Los Angeles County a Pilot Paramedic Program was initiated in August of 1969 between the LA County Fire Department (LA Co FD) and Harbor General Hospital. Six LA Co FD firemen volunteered for a 6 month internship to operate a Fire Department Heart Rescue Unit known as RS59 with CCU nurses riding along in the squad to provide medical supervision and legal coverage of the paramedics. It was known as a "pilot program" because there was no legal authority in the state law that permitted this level of field care to be administered by firefighters. The first six paramedics graduated in December of 1969 and began supervised emergency responses from Harbor General. On July 15, 1970 Governor Ronald Reagan signed into law a bill sponsored by State Senator James Wedworth and Assemblyman Larry Townsend known as the Wedworth Townsend Paramedic Act. This bill authorized the use of specially trained mobile intensive care paramedics to operate in the field under the remote supervision of a hospital staff.

In January of 1972 a television program, Emergency! made its 2 hour World Premier on NBC. The show ran for over 5 years and spread the demand for paramedic services in communities across the nation. It was at about this time that the Campbell Fire Department Paramedic Program began to emerge in the minds of the firefighters that were assigned to Rescue 25. It would require a great effort from the firefighters to convince their peers, the fire department administration, city administration and the medical community. The private ambulance companies formed a statewide political committee to defeat any program across the state.

Several important groups and committees in the Santa Clara Valley had to be convinced that a paramedic program was needed in the county and could be administered by the Santa Clara County Emergency Medical Committee. A class of 24 volunteers was secured from Central Fire District, San Jose Fire Department and the Campbell Fire Department. A CCU nurse instructor, Charlene Souza, from Alexian Brothers Hospital had been hired through a grant from the Heart Association. A class room was secured from West Valley Community College and a series of guest lecturers from the medical community volunteered their time to teach the medical classes in cardiac care, anatomy, pharmacology, orthopedics, child birth, etc. for a 320 hour curriculum. Extensive clinical hospital training was conducted at Stanford, Alexian Brothers, Good Samaritan and Valley Medical Center Hospitals. This hospital training served the purpose of training the paramedics and introducing them to the hospital staff. A 60 hour field internship would come later riding along with the Long Beach Fire Department paramedics. The first class of fire department paramedics to graduate in Northern California was Rick Kincaid, George Renshaw, Alan Lowder, Ray Rivero, Mike Johnson, Fred Van Hook, Fred Bailey and Garry Salmon. The Campbell paramedics had trained on their days off for over a year and were finally certified by the Santa Clara County Health Department on May 10th, 1974 at the Sunnyoaks Fire Station. It was a dream come true for the firefighters and their families.

The City of Campbell had formed a 1973 Citizens Goals Committee and Rick Kincaid got himself appointed to one of the sub committees whose recommendation was to fund and equip a new paramedic vehicle. The recommendation was approved by the committee at large and an amount of $21,000 was allocated from a fund sharing program by the City. Capt. Bill Morgan was selected to meet with Public Works staff and order a 1974 Chevrolet 454 Custom 130 cab and 1 ton chassis. Rick Kincaid secured an exact copy of the blueprints used by LA Co FD for their Squad 51 and a body was fabricated by A & A Truck Body in San Jose.

When the new Chevy vehicle arrived it was outfitted with tools and equipment by the paramedics. Ed Nunez at Public Works Department installed a combination light bar/siren and the old favorite air horn used on the 1960 Ford pickup. Ed also made several improvements to the engine performance. County Communications installed the 2 way radio for dispatch and a UHF radio to contact the Emergency Department Base Station at Stanford University Hospital in Palo Alto. Many technical problems occurred due to poor radio reception and radio interference by local ambulance personnel. Eventually the emergency department at Good Samaritan Hospital agreed to operate the Radio Base Station for the Campbell program and provide continuing education for the paramedics.

In 1975 The Palo Alto Fire Department was training a group of paramedics for Rescue 1 at Stanford University Hospital under the supervision of Dr. Michael Eliastam. San Jose Ambulance personnel also had a group in that class and they would primarily use Valley Medical Center as their Base Station.

In 1978 the County Board of Supervisors, after two years of debate and political posturing, finally approved a county wide paramedic program utilizing a combination of fire department and private ambulance providers. While the debate amongst the county politicians was dragging on the Campbell Paramedics had been racking up an average of 9 saves a year from cardiac and trauma incidents since 1974. Campbell's population was 30,000 at the time.

Over the next five years Rescue 25 piled on 64,000 miles running approximately 1800 calls annually for medical rescue, trauma related calls and all structure fire calls in the City of Campbell. An occasional trip to the A & W Root beer on Winchester Blvd for much needed refreshments for the boys back at the station also contributed to the miles.

Campbell Fire Department purchased a 1979 Ford 5 ton Van Braun rescue/ambulance from Emergency Medical Supplies of Pacheco, California for $38,000. The new Rescue 25 was placed in service in March of 1980 and was the last vehicle to have the Rescue 25 designator. The 1974 Chevy Rescue 25 was retired and placed in reserve until it was declared surplus and sold to a Campbell Policeman, Mark Anspach at auction. City Councilman Mike Kotowski approached Officer Anspach about selling the truck back to the City of Campbell. Officer Anspach agreed on a price and the truck has been stored at the Public Works Corporation yard until the restoration project began in 2009.

A list of people and agencies that contributed to the Campbell Paramedic Program

• Campbell City Manager Bob Stephens.
• Fire Chief George Maxwell approved the original Rescue 25.
• Fire Chief Gene Borden authorized the concept of a pilot program of Firefighter/Paramedics on Rescue 25.
• Police Chief Donald Burr supported the concept of paramedics in the City of Campbell.
• San Jose Battalion Chief Vince Clett agreed to send FF to training at West Valley College for a 320 hour didactic program.
• Central Fire Chief Kirby allowed FF to attend the 320 hour training class at West Valley College.
• San Jose Fire Chief Jones endorsed the paramedic training program at West Valley College.
• Jeanette Watson was on the Campbell Citizens Goal Committee when funds were approved for paramedics.
• Charlene Chaloner (Souza) was a nurse in the CCU at Alexian Brothers Hospital in San Jose. She was hired to administer the training at West Valley College.
• West Valley Community College in Saratoga, agreed to provide a classroom for the didactic portion of the 320 hour class.
• Heart Association of Santa Clara County, Dr. Malcolm Parker.
• Santa Clara County Medical Society provided a grant to fund the 320 hour training costs.
• Stanford University Hospital agreed to provide original base station operation and supervision of the MICP interns.
• Dr. Michael Eliastam was Director of Emergency Services at Stanford.
• Good Samaritan Hospital became the base station for Rescue 25.
• Diana Molarius, RN was a Good Samaritan Emergency Department nurse that worked as an MICN/base station operator.
• Dr. David Netboy, Director of Emergency Services at Good Samaritan Hospital.
• Dr. Ellis Weeks supervised the base station and the in-service training.
• Santa Clara Valley Medical Center Emergency Department provided much of the in-hospital training for the paramedic interns.
• Long Beach Fire Department provided 60 hour field internship.
• Captain Bill Morgan supported the construction of the Rescue 25 vehicle.
• Ed Nunez at DPW maintained and modified the Rescue 25 vehicle.
• Rick Kincaid, George Renshaw, Alan Lowder, Ray Rivero, Mike Johnson, Fred Van Hook, Fred Bailey, Garry Salmon were the first class of fire department paramedics to graduate in Northern California.
• Dr. Malcom Parker was spearheading a MCCU at Los Gatos Hospital. He offered to train the firefighters stationed in the response zone of the LG MCCU so the firefighters could support the MCCU. He worked on many of the committees in the Santa Clara County medical community to support the concept of a paramedic program.
• On July 14, 1970, the Wedworth-Townsend Act was signed into law by then Governor of California Ronald Reagan.
• Introduced by Senator James Q. Wedworth and Assemblyman Larry Townsend, this legislation enabled a pilot paramedic program to begin in Los Angeles County by proposing that firefighters be certified to perform some of those procedures traditionally reserved for doctors and nurses.

The Paramedics' First Year
[newspaper article, 1975]

by Pat Safford

At least nine people are alive today as a result of treatment by Campbell paramedics. That total may be much higher but that's the number of "clinically dead" patients they were able to successfully treat during their first year of operation.

In the annual report recently issued by the Campbell Fire Department, a total of 947 calls were responded to during the period Sept. 3, 1974 to Sept. 3, 1975.

The most dramatic information concerns the 163 cardiac patients local firefighter-paramedics treated. According to the report, Rescue 25 (the paramedic truck) responded to help 24 clinically dead patients - those whose hearts had stopped beating. A total of nine were resuscitated through defibrillation, drug therapy and other methods.

According to Fred Van Hook, a local paramedic the total percentage of "saves" could actually have been much higher. The 24 cases included many who had been dead for 20 to 30 minutes or longer before a call was made to the fire department. In order to successfully treat a patient whose heart has stopped beating, paramedics must reach the patient within 4 to 6 minutes. Van Hook estimated the percentage of saves in calls received within the time "would be well over 75 per cent."

In other cardiac and serious injury cases, it's much more difficult to estimate how many persons might have died if immediate medical treatment was not available. Of the over 900 calls, paramedics accompanied patients to a local hospital in 347 cases. Most calls were within the city limits, but of that total 142 runs were made to areas covered by the San Jose Fire Department and 53 calls in the Central Fire District (county) areas.

A breakdown of cases shows medical problems were the most common call (417) with injury cases a close second (405). In addition, 104 psychiatric cases were treated, the lion's share (93) involving drug overdoses.

Of the injury cases, vehicle accidents accounted for 246 calls with 61 injuries related to violence and 98 listed in the category "other."

A breakdown of time per call shows most cases took 10 to 20 minutes (23 percent) or 20 to 30 minutes (26 per cent). The lowest time, 0 to 5 minutes, accounted for 1.82 per cent of the calls.

Total costs of the program, from Aug. 13, 1973 when training first started, to Sept. 3, 1975 was $88,038, according to the report. Training expense, including the paramedic truck and supplies, cost $23,490 with the balance going for salaries, overtime pay, additional supplies ($3,480) and training at Stanford University ($1,500).

Good Samaritan hospital is currently the base station for local paramedics, and the bulk of the continuing education occurs there. Most patients treated are taken to Valley Medical Center (30 per cent), with the balance going to Good Samaritan (29 per cent), Los Gatos Community Hospital (23 per cent), Kaiser Hospital (9 per cent), O'Conner (7 per cent) and San Jose and Campbell Community hospitals (both 1 per cent). According to the report few patients are taken to Campbell Community since they don't have either a coronary care or intensive care unit, "necessary to treat the majority of patients to whom we respond."

Paramedics are required to obtain a minimum of 10 hours of continuing education each month to qualify for certification. Now about 75 per cent of that education is accomplished "on duty" time. This training includes stints in the hospital emergency room, coronary care and intensive care unit and operating room. In addition paramedics take part in "critiques" of cases with hospital staff and take classes at both Good Samaritan and Stanford University medical center.

Recertification will be required for seven of the eight local paramedics in May of 1976, and will include a written, oral and practical examination given by the county health department.

Public acceptance of the local program has been "overwhelming," and a constant flow of letters praising the paramedics is received by the fire department and city.

Not all letters are from the life-and-death coronary care or accident situations. One was from a new mother:

"My husband and I want to thank your paramedics for the help they gave us in the early morning hours of Friday," one letter reads. "They kept us calm when our second child decided to enter this world sooner than we thought."

Surplus van wanted after all - City buys for $4,000
[newspaper article, c.1982]

The city of Campbell plans to pay $4,000 to buy back a paramedic van it sold in October in an auction of surplus city property.

The paramedic transport van, the city's first, was put on the auction block after the city council OK'd the purchase of a replacement earlier this year. Mark Auspack, a college student and a member of the city's police reserve, bought it for $2,600.

Not knowing of the sale, Mike Kotowski, a Campbell planning commissioner, decided the van deserved a place in the Campbell Historical Museum. The van is a worhty museum piece "not in age, but in service," Kotowski said recently. The van was the centerpiece of Campbell's paramedic unit, which was the area's first when it started in 1974, he said.

"I had asked to be told when the unit becae available so the museum could get it," Kotowski said.

Since the present downtown fire station will soon house the museum, "it would be nice to get the truck into the building it was originally in," Kotowski said.

An initial check with City Hall about the van's whereabouts did not elicit much information. But when the request by the city's Civic Improvement Commission to donate the van to the museum was about to go on the Cit Council agenda, Kotowski said he got the message from the city manager's office, "Hey we can't donate this, it's been sold."

Kotowski said he then went to Auspack on a retrieval mission.

Auspack was advertising the refurbished Chevy van for $4,500.

"I talked him down to $4,000," Kotowski said. "He just wants the money to get through school."

The matter finally came before the City Council last week. Kotowski told council members he would lead a fund-raising drive to gather money to buy back the van.

But the City Council agreed to pay Auspack $4,000 from city coffers. His purchase price of $2,600 will be refunded from motor pool funds and the remainder will come from general funds.

There was some talk about using the van as a backup unit for the new one. But City Manager Bob Stephens reminded the council, "We did discuss is as a backup, but the staff reported there owuld be considerable expense to refit it as an emergency backup unit. I didn't recommend refurbishing it and the council concurred."

Reflecting on the return of the van, Kotowski commented, "For some reason or other, it practically took an act of Congress to get it back. "The Museum people were petrified (that the van would be lost), but the city made good on a mess-up."

City buys back first rescue truck
[newspaper article, c.1982]

Fire Department Rescue Truck No. 25, Campbell's original paramedic unit, will be placed in the Campbell Historical Museum. But, the city council had to buy it twice to get it there.

The vehicle's historical significance (its purchase introduced the paramedic concept to Northern California) was at first overlooked by city officials when they offered it at a city auction Oct. 3. A reserve officer with the Campbell Police Department bought it for $2,600.

The unit was put up for auction after the council had authorized buying a new paramedic unit during its 1980-81 budget hearings.

The city's Civic Improvement Commission, unaware of its sale and in response to a request from city planning commissioner Michael Kotowski, determined Rescue Unit No. 25 was historically significant and recommended that it be retained for placement in the museum.

Kotowski contacted the buyer, who had already painted and partially resotred the vehicle. He agreed to sell it back to the city for $4,000.

Kotowski asked the council to pay the auction price and volunteered to man a fund drive to raise the remainder of the money. He also requested that the council procure the fittings (city seal, air horn and light rack) to re-outfit the paramedic unit as it was in its time of service.

The council voted to bear the entire cost. It allocataed $2,600 from the motor vehicle fund and another $1,400 from the general fund for the purchase. It also stipulated tha Rescue Unit No. 25 be restored so that it could serve, if needed, as a suitable emergency backup unit.