SUSSEX CO., Del. - When it comes to emergency response, minutes and even seconds can mean the difference between life and death, which is why Sussex County EMS in Delaware is working hard to cut back on response time with a new project.
The hum of drills and the buzzing of chainsaws, those are the familiar sounds in Lewes, at the future home of the new Sussex count EMS station.
"It's going to be our first station with multiple drive thru bays," says Glenn Marshall, the Spokesperson for Sussex County EMS.
The new EMS station on Plantation Road in Lewes will replace the current one off of Route 1. Although these stations are only about a quarter mile away from each other, EMS officials tell 47 ABC this new location will make a difference when it comes to response time.
"Route 1 can really become a parking lot during the summertime especially during the holidays," says Marshall.
Marshall tells 47 ABC they aren't always hitting the national standard for EMS response time, which is 8 minutes.
"There is a lot of traffic on there either the two little strip malls in there, restaurant, so that can be a challenge to get out and get on the road," says Marshal..
Marshall says this new location will allow easier access to back roads throughout the county. He also says that another plus of this new station, is the size. Their new location will be 5,000 square feet compared to their current 3,000 foot location, which means they will have more space for training.
"With this station we got some room where we can bring more training equipment over and utilize that time frame in this building," says Marshall.