Pennsylvania Governor Corbett Sends EMS Personnel to Assist with Hurricane Sandy Recovery Efforts

MIDDLETOWN, Pa., Nov. 2, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Governor Tom Corbett today met with 50 emergency medical services personnel who were on their way to assist the residents of New Jersey with Hurricane Sandy recovery efforts.

"We are fortunate to have emergency medical services resources available to help a neighboring state that has experienced such devastating outcomes from Hurricane Sandy," Corbett said. "Their goal is to assist those in need, while ensuring we are still able to operate safely in Pennsylvania."

The governor met with the emergency medical services personnel this morning at the Turnpike Commission headquarters before they left for New Jersey. An additional 20 ambulance crews will also be traveling from Pennsylvania to New Jersey today.   

The personnel and ambulances dispatched today are in addition to the 35 ambulances sent earlier this week. They are part of 14 strike teams with nearly 300 individuals sent to New Jersey to assist in the recovery efforts to date.

The first team left on the morning of Oct. 30, carrying EMS personnel from 27 counties statewide. They were on a three-day mission to support the 911 system and offer any additional assistance needed at shelters and other locations in storm-ravaged areas.

A request for additional resources, sent on Oct. 31, resulted in an extension of the first mission and the departure of seven more teams with 35 ambulances today. The EMS personnel departing today are from 21 different counties in Pennsylvania.

At this time, all of Pennsylvania's emergency medical services personnel are scheduled to return home early next week, based on New Jersey's needs.

The Pennsylvania strike team program, developed nearly 10 years ago, currently consists of 150 ambulance companies with nearly 900 personnel, all of whom are educated in incident management and disaster emergency response.

For more information, visit www.pa.gov.

Media contact: Christine Cronkright , 717-783-1116

SOURCE Pennsylvania Office of the Governor

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http://www.pa.gov