Always ready to serve, 24 hours a day, and taken entirely for granted until we need one, Camden has had ambulance and emergency medical services for many years. On this page their Camden story will be told, and before we go any further, a big thank you to these unheralded heroes.    

A Brief Recent History of the Ambulance Service in Camden

Camden’s new automobile police patrol and ambulance were put in service on July 14, 1910. One of the first drivers was Albert S. York, who eventually rose to the rank of Sergeant on the Camden Police Department. 

Prior to late 1973, the Ambulance Squad was being run by the City Police and Fire Departments. At that time the City of Camden started hiring Civilian Ambulance Drivers. Some employees had basic first aid. From the early 1960s through November of 1974 the Ambulance service was under the Camden City Police Department. 

In November of 1974, the responsibility for operating the Ambulance service was transferred to the City of Camden Department of Health, with the City of Camden hiring Emergency Medical Technicians (EMT's). The ambulance drivers that were already working, trained the new EMT's on the street, and then, the City sent all the ambulance drivers to EMT school in February of 1975. 

The ambulances in 1974 was then stationed at the First Police District headquarters at 5th Street and Taylor Avenue. In November of that year, they were moved to the old Convention Center which was on Haddon Avenue and Mickle Boulevard, across from Cooper Hospital, and after a relatively short time moved again, this time to the Third Police District house at 27th and Federal Streets, behind the Firehouse. In June of 1976 the Ambulance moved once again, this time to a building that had been a Gulf gasoline station for over 30 years.

The City of Camden ran the Emergency Medical Service, which was called City of Camden Emergency Medical Service, from late 1973 to June 1980 at which time they contracted the Emergency Medical Service to a private company called Certified from North New Jersey. The ambulance service was then known as the Camden Emergency Medical Service. In September of 1986 the Emergency Medical Service was taken over by UMDNJ- University Hospital, from Newark New Jersey, which still operates the Emergency Medical Services, in both Newark and Camden.

Camden's
First
Ambulance

Chief Richard Tremper with UMDNJ EMS Supervisor’s Vehicle
circa 1990

 UMDNJ SOG 
(Special Operations Group)
Trailer

Set up for Mass Casualty Incidents
and coverage of special events

Circa 1995

In 2006 UMDNJ EMS Camden celebrated its 20th year of service to the City of Camden. UMDNJ EMS answers a little over 25,000 calls a year!  Here is a picture of one of the newest ambulances. 

Steve Skipton Photo 

Northeast Corner of Penn Street and Chester Street - October 16, 2011

300 Block of Chester Street - October 16, 2011

300 Block of Chester Street - October 16, 2011

 Thanks to Steve Skipton, Debbie Day, Gary J. Olive, and Richard Tremper
for help in creating this page.