Last evening, the first aid squad was summoned to a house for a man who was severely bleeding. The crew responded to the squad Building and was ready to go within 5 minutes of the call. The Crew received the address from the dispatcher, and went to the Location. It should have taken at best, maybe another 5 minutes to get to the location, from the squad building. But it took almost 10 to 12 minutes to find the house. The reason was that, while the house did have the number on it, it was hidden behind several large bushes. The location was finally found, after, a member got out and ran up to the door of several houses to see the house numbers.

Unfortunately, this happens, all too often. The ambulance carries a book, which has the directions to every street in Mount Olive. But after arriving at that street, we need to still find the house. Many times, the call goes out in the evening, the street is dark, there are no lights on the house, the house does not have a number, or it is obscured. This can be a problem, especially if the patient is in serious trouble, and we need to get to you quickly.

There are some things that the public can do to help ensure that in the event of an emergency, the ambulance can get to your house quickly. They are:
     Make sure that you have a house number that can be seen from the street.
     Make sure it is not obstructed by bushes, trees, etc.
     Put the house number on your mailbox.
     Make sure that your house is well lighted.
     Try and have someone stand outside to direct us to the scene.
     Try to have a clear path to the patient (if possible), so we can get the stretcher in to you. This includes both inside and outside.
 
Another thing the public can do in preparation of an emergency is to have available (for each member of the family) an emergency document, with the following information:
     Name, address, phone, age, birth date, social security number
     A list of medications that you are taking
     Any medical history (example -- Diabetes, Heart problems, etc)
     Allergies - anything including medications
     Your doctor or doctors names and what they are treating you for
     Any special medical needs (for example - home oxygen, etc) This data should be updated regularly with current information
 
The Budd Lake First Aid and Rescue Squad has 'printed cards' for filling out with the above information. You can get them by stopping by the squad building any Monday evening between 7:00 PM and 9:00 PM.
You can also get these cards by sending a self-addressed envelope to:
     Budd Lake First Aid and Rescue Squad 
     PO Box 761 
     Budd Lake, NJ 07828

No one ever wishes for a medical emergency, but it is important, that you are ready in the event of one. Hopefully the above information will be useful, in helping the Budd Lake First Aid and Rescue Squad, better serve you.