Emergency Medical Services

The Big Bear Fire Department is proud of its status as a premier EMS provider. We currently provide state-of-the-art Advanced Life Support (ALS) and paramedic ambulance services to the residents and visitors of the Big Bear Valley and surrounding areas. This includes a 256 square mile response area within the San Bernardino National Forest.

Three ALS ambulances and three ALS equipped engines are staffed around the clock, 365 days a year. An additional fourth ALS ambulance is staffed during peak periods, with the ability to staff additional ALS ambulances as needed.

All employees of the Big Bear Fire Department are trained as Fire Fighter/Paramedic or Fire Fighter/Emergency Medical Technician.

Our community is located in the heart of the San Bernardino Mountains of Southern California. Outdoor recreation is the main attraction to residents and visitors of our valley. Lake activities, biking, hiking, camping, and climbing are among favorite pastimes in the summer months. During the winter, our community is home to the two largest ski and snowboarding areas in southern California. All this activity tends to keep our ambulance crews busy. Our EMS service has enjoyed a highly regarded status in the EMS community and is often called upon to trial and study new technologies in the field of EMS. Many of these trials have later become the standard in EMS care.

Notable Items

• Among the first to implement 12 lead ECG technologies to rapidly identify a heart attack.
• The design and implementation of an aggressive cardiac care protocol.
• The first to implement a computer based field care reporting system.
• The first to trial the use of C-PAP technology in the field to aid those with respiratory distress.
• Among the first in southern California to offer an ambulance subscription program.
• Active in the design of field care protocol.

EMS Coordinator Assistant Chief Mike Maltby states, "As new lifesaving technologies and techniques for EMS evolve, Big Bear Fire Department EMS will continue to lead the way."