The Booker Ambulance Service was created in 1972 as a division of the Booker Fire Department under the City of Booker. At that time the Red Cross provided training in First Aid for the responders. The first vehicle used was an Air Force surplus hearse type Pontiac.  Prior to the Highway Safety Act of 1966 and the EMS Act of 1973 there were no requirements for operating ambulance services. These two acts set standards in training and equipment. These acts also provided funds for grants to train personnel and purchase or upgrade equipment. Booker Ambulance Service used those funds to purchase a 1977 Dodge van ambulance to meet the new federal standards¹.

From 1972 to 2010 Booker EMS continued operating as a volunteer EMS service as a division of the Booker Fire Department. Continued struggles to find new volunteers, combined with increasing requirements from the state to become certified EMS personnel, caused the City to approach the Booker Hospital District for assistance in 2009. The Booker Hospital District took over Booker EMS operations in 2010, and over the following years converted the service to a career service.

Today, Booker EMS provides critical care paramedic service with three licensed ambulances and a rescue truck. Our units have some of the most sophisticated medical technology including point of care blood lab testing, cardiac monitors with CPR feedback technology, AutoPulse external cardiac assist devices, Ventilators, and much more. Booker EMS is honored to serve our community and the surrounding region by providing excellent and compassionate care.

¹  Booker 75^th “A Great Place to Call Home”