[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 4]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 5095]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




         IN HONOR OF THE CARIBOU FIRE AND AMBULANCE DEPARTMENT

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. BRUCE POLIQUIN

                                of maine

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, April 15, 2015

  Mr. POLIQUIN. Mr. Speaker, I am honored to rise today to congratulate 
the Caribou Fire and Ambulance Department on earning the 2015 
Congressional Fire Services Institute/Masimo Excellence in Fire 
Service-Based Emergency Medical Services Award. This brave team of 
volunteer Mainers represents sound practice and dedication to 
protecting others day in and day out.
  This top-tier department is tasked with covering 348 square miles, 
amounting to nine towns and 14,000 residents. The fire and medical 
units handle first response services for a vast rural district that 
houses sporting activities such as boating, hunting, ATV trails, and 
winter sledding. Furthermore, the department conducts emergency 
transfers by land and air from a local hospital to a trauma center 175 
miles away.
  Under Chief Scott Susi, the Caribou Fire and Ambulance Department 
boasts three five-person crews, along with 15 full time paramedics--a 
crowning achievement for a department hoping to expand without a 
corresponding financial burden on the communities it serves.
  Community engagement directly corresponds to the success of this 
department. Sensitivity to the taxable impact of its operations and 
attendance at local council meetings are just two of the multitude of 
ways in which this department actively and uniquely works together with 
the region in which it serves.
  The Caribou Fire and Ambulance Department serves as a model of 
efficient success for fellow Maine fire and Ambulance departments and 
for service men and women across our country.

                          ____________________