National Park Service uses Polaris RANGER 6×6 as EMS Unit

Polaris Ranger 6×6 – Grand Canyon National Park

The South Rim of the Grand Canyon is the most accessible part of Grand Canyon National Park and is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.  About 4.5 million people visit the Grand Canyon each year, and by far most of them end up at the South Rim. If you have been to the South Rim during peak usage in the summer, you know to expect lots of people, traffic congestion and parking problems.

With all of the visitors, it should be no surprise that Grand Canyon National Park has one of the busiest Emergency Medical Services programs in the National Park Service.  Park personnel responded to 1,400 medical incidents in 2007.  The 7,000 foot elevation of the South Rim is deceiving and elderly visitors frequently experience cardiac related chest pain, while walking along the rim.  With all the people, vehicles and walking paths that are often too small for a normal truck based rescue unit, the National Park Service had a challenge on its hands.

Polaris Ranger 6×6 – EMS

 Last year, they decided to take a different approach and go with an EMS unit built on a UTV in an attempt to be a little more nimble. Based at the South Rim Fire Station, the compact size of the Polaris Ranger 6X6 permits National Park Service personnel to more efficiently reach medical emergencies along the popular Rim Trail. The Ranger 6×6 is also used to effectively conduct search operations for missing persons along the rim and on adjacent fire roads.  Additionally it is perfect for transporting rescue equipment to accident scenes on the canyon rim. 

The 6X6 feature of the Polaris Ranger is useful in winter snowpack and on high clearance roads permitting year-round mobility and access.