Romanian emergency service expands motorcycle fleet to new city

The Banat Emergency Situations Inspectorate, in western Romania’s Timiș county, has been equipped with two motorcycles for urban interventions. The motorcycles will be used by the emergency service SMURD paramedics to respond to medical emergencies in Timişoara in a shorter time and with lower costs. So far, SMURD has been using motorcycles for emergency interventions in Bucharest, Cluj and Constanţa. The vehicles are equipped with medical devices needed for first-aid interventions, such as a semi-automatic defibrillator, a self-inflating bag, a laryngoscope kit, a medical emergencies bag and other specific equipment. The motorcycles will also be equipped with specific communication systems. They are located in sites with heavy traffic or in areas with limited access in order to shorten the response time and provide qualified first aid to victims until an ambulance arrives. The project of the motorcycles for emergency interventions was first implemented in Bucharest. In 2016 and 2017, paramedics on motorcycles responded to over 4,000 events. The response time was of 3 – 5 minutes on average, lower than the 8-minute average of an ambulance. The Bucharest emergency inspectorate ISU is equipped with seven motorcycles. Last year, Cluj and Constanța received four motorcycles. In the two cities, paramedics responded to over 200 cases using the motorcycles. The Timiș motorcycles were purchased with financial support offered by Lidl Romania and the Foundation for SMURD. Romania tries to renew its stock of old fire trucks and ambulances Romania’s emergency services upgrade covers decades old car fleet, equipment renewal (Photo: Fundatia pentru S.M.U.R.D. Facebook Page) editor@romania-insider.com