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Carlisle Fire Company requests $300,000 as ambulance and EMS calls rise
Summary
Carlisle Fire Company President Louis Sachs asked the council for $300,000 for FY2026 to help cover rising ambulance runs, equipment and staffing costs; the company reported 5,069 ambulance requests in 2024 and said the majority occurred within city limits.
Louis Sachs, president of the Carlisle Fire Company, told the Milford council workshop that ambulance and EMS call volume has increased sharply and that the company is requesting $300,000 for fiscal 2026 to address equipment, staffing and operating costs.
Sachs said the fire company handled 5,069 ambulance requests in 2024 across its district and that 3,942 of those calls — about 78% — were within Milford city limits. "This year so far for 2025, just starting in January, we're over 900 calls," he said.
Sachs described rising equipment costs and long lead times: ambulances now cost $300,000 to $400,000 and take more than two years to build; a tower ladder purchased two years ago cost about $1.2 million while comparable recent bids reached $2.1 million; a new engine the company ordered is approximately $1.1 million.
The company said it staffs two full ambulance crews 24/7 (eight full-time personnel) and maintains other part-time staff and an EMS supervisor. Sachs also raised reimbursement pressures, noting patients with Medicare, Medicaid or no insurance and that insurance payments often fail to cover costs. He described reliance on mutual aid from nearby districts when both ambulances are in the field and warned that mutual-aid response times vary by location.
"The Carlisle Fire Company for the fiscal year 2026 is asking for $300,000 to help offset our expenses between equipment and apparatus, manpower," Sachs said. Council members asked follow-up questions about mutual-aid intervals and growth drivers; council took no vote during the workshop.
