GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Gainesville Fire Rescue’s SWAT medics now have a dedicated armored vehicle for use in high-risk situations.
The vehicle was used for a recent SWAT training exercise and will allow the medics to get closer in the event of an active shooter or hostage incident.
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The closer location is referred to as a “warm zone” and allows them to provide quicker care and to move those injured back to a safer area.
“You have a warm zone which is hot zone adjacent. So you’re not actively being targeted, but you’re in an area where you may have a stray round that can get you or you might become a target of opportunity. Someone gets past a perimeter, walks around a corner, and you happen to be there,” said Joseph Hillhouse, Gainesville Fire Rescue district chief.
The vehicle will be used whenever city or county SWAT teams are deployed and will house advanced life support equipment, and transport the medics and their gear.
When not in use by the SWAT team, the vehicle will also be used for Gainesville’s Community Resource paramedic program designed to address healthcare needs.
“It deploys with our community resource paramedic, so if we happen to go ahead and interview or do a physical exam on somebody that may be homeless, we have a spot where we can take them in and still protect their dignity,” Hillhouse said.
The vehicle was deployed for the first time to assist sheriff’s officers during the recent shooting of two Gilchrist County deputies.