Residents, members of the Mineola Volunteer Ambulance Corps (MVAC) and of the Mineola Fire Department recently gathered outside MVAC’s headquarters to officially add ambulance 263 to MVAC’s fleet. The ambulance started its service with MVAC on Feb. 16 of this year and within just only 30 days, ambulance 263 was primarily responding to COVID-19 calls that were being placed throughout the village.
Typically, MVAC responds to more than 1,500 emergencies a year. Some of those emergencies can be minor to severe and include slips and falls, narcotic overdoses, auto accidents, belly aches, headaches to shootings, stabbings or cardiac emergencies.
“The ambulance was dedicated in memory of ex-chief and commissioner Edward Rummel who passed away four years ago after 26 years of service to the department,” Board of Commissioners of MVAC Thomas Devaney said. “Ed was also a member of the Albertson Fire Company and a sergeant in the NYPD. Ed’s mother, Patricia Rummel, sister Kim Rummel Morovich and two nephews were on hand and were the ones to break the bottle of champagne on the ambulance.”
Also part of the ceremony, MVAC invited John MacAvoy from Hanover Community Bank to thank them for their gracious donation to purchase three Arrow EZ-IO systems for each of MVAC’s ambulances. The equipment will allow the MVAC easier vascular access to patients when MVAC may not be able to secure a more traditional IV.
“The final thank you for the day went to the Adolf Block VFW Post 1305 who recently donated $10,000 to MVAC,” Devaney said. “We had Manuel Martin and Louis Pinto on hand so that we could publicly acknowledge them.”
The MVAC is active in the Village of Mineola when it comes to public events and is always looking to recruit new members. However, this year has been a little bit more difficult due to COVID-19 and its restrictions.
“We usually have a tent at the Mineola Street Fair and we usually do something during EMS Week, which is in May, however the pandemic put a hold on both,” Devaney explained. “We are always looking for members. All necessary training and certifications are provided too.”
For more information on how to sign up, visit www.mineolavac.com/membership.
