Fairbanks City Council accepts $728,000 federal grant for ambulance bus

The Fairbanks City Council on Oct. 12 adopted a resolution from Mayor Mindy O'Neall accepting $728,000 in federal money for a Fairbanks Fire Department medical ambulance bus, according to the council agenda.

The bus can carry up to 22 seated patients or 14 patients on stretchers at once, according to the federal award record. The Health Resources and Services Administration, a federal health agency, made the award Sept. 11.

The record says the bus is meant to expand regional emergency medical response. It would be used in mass-casualty incidents, disasters, evacuations and other emergencies with many patients. It will also support at least three mutual-aid partners in the Fairbanks North Star Borough, the record says.

Alaska News reported Sept. 22 that the money is congressionally directed funding and that the grant covers one year, leaving crewing the bus after that to the city. The grant performance period runs from Sept. 30 through Sept. 29, 2027.

The council also adopted two other resolutions that night: one supporting statewide regulation of e-bikes and asking the Alaska Municipal League to make the issue a priority, and one further developing the city's approach to blighted, vacant and nuisance properties.