With the wear and tear put on Stuart’s current ambulance from rescuing citizens it is time to move on.

The Stuart City Council recently approved the funding for a new ambulance for the Rescue Department at a special meeting on July 15th. The current ambulance has been in operation for 15 years and the high mileage and the cost of maintenance continued to cause issues. Stuart Rescue Director Sean Bovinett says a new ambulance has been put on hold for a while now.

“We were supposed to be on a rotation, where ever so often we would replace the ambulance and that kind of got off track but now we are working towards getting back on track with that.”

The new ambulance will come with new features that will address safety for the patients and Emergency Medical Technicians. Bovinett describes some of the big safety features included in the ambulance.

“We put in there were really safety features in getting someone to sit in a seat belt, a four point harness, and putting everything in arms reach so they can work with the patient without having to get out of their seat, and they have everything right there in the back.”

Other features the ambulance will have are better rollover protection, new heart monitors and ventilators.

The new ambulance will cost $157,205 and the City will issue a bond to help pay for it. The estimated arrival for the new ambulance is June of 2022, and that’s when the City will start to make payments.