Archive of posts filed under the Rescue category.

Winston-Salem and Forsyth County Ambulance and Rescue History

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Presenting research notes on ambulance, rescue, and EMS history in Winston-Salem and Forsyth County. See Google drive of source articles (forthcoming) Read research notes (forthcoming). 1930 to 1949 1937 – Winston-Salem Rescue Squad organized. First rescue squad in the state. They performed rescue functions but no transport services. 1950 to 1959 1957 – Winston-Salem Light Rescue …

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Greensboro and Guilford County Ambulance History

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Presenting research notes on ambulance, rescue, and EMS history in Greensboro and Guilford County. See Google drive of source articles (forthcoming) Read research notes (forthcoming). Timeline Pre-History 1910 – First ambulance is remembered as a horse-drawn unit, operated from 1910 to 1915. Was sold to a woman’s group, likely the Greensboro Ambulance Association, who mounted …

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Radiator Specialty Company Explosion – November 26, 1980

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This is a blog version of a Facebook posting from April 6, 2025. Looking back at the Radiator Specialty Company explosion and fire in Union County, NC, on November 26, 1980, from newspaper accounts in the Charlotte News and Charlotte Observer over the next couple days. On a Wednesday morning, just after 9 a.m., an …

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Charlotte and Mecklenburg County Rescue and EMS History

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Presenting researching notes on the history of rescue and ambulance services in Charlotte and Mecklenburg County. Read research notes (pdf) See Google Drive folder of clippings. Summary Before 1960 1921 – First advertisements appear for ambulance services in newspapers. Operators are car and taxi companies. 1926 – Funeral homes begin adding ambulance services.  1947 – …

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Kernersville Helicopter Rescue and Crash, September 25 1984

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This is a blog version of a Facebook posting on March 25, 2025 Recounting the fatal helicopter crash in downtown Kernersville on September 25, 1984, during the attempted rescue/recovery of an injured worker atop a decommissioned water tower. The incident started about 6:10 p.m. after 19 year-old Charles Glenwood Tompkins Jr. as injured while working …

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Siloam Bridge Collapse – February 23, 1975

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Updated: March 25, 2025, with additional clippings and artifacts added to the linked Google Drive. This is a blog version of a Facebook posting from February 2025.  Here’s a short summary about the Siloam Bridge Collapse, that we learned about this week.  This happened on Sunday night, February 23, 1975, in Siloam, NC, on the …

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New Hanover County Ambulance and Rescue Services History

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Presenting research notes on the history of ambulance and rescue services in New Hanover County. View chart – JPG | PDF See below for selected notes. See this Google Drive folder for 200+ articles, including those referenced below. 1950s 1957, Feb – Cape Fear Ambulance Service was under new management, prices reduced, read an advertisement. …

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Oldest Rescue Squads in North Carolina + Master List

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Posting updated May 30, 2024, with banner graphic added. Database is also periodically updated with corrections.  Research notes on the oldest rescue squads in North Carolina. Originally compiled in September 2022 in this Facebook posting. Source data in this Google spreadsheet copied from Excel master file. Name County Status Start Stop Winston-Salem Rescue Squad, Inc. …

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Fatal Ambulance Accidents in North Carolina

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Research notes on fatal ambulance accidents in North Carolina. Most involve collisions with other vehicles. Sources include newspapers.com, Digital North Carolina Newspapers, the Fayetteville Observer archives via News Bank, and numerous Google searches.  See source documents in this Google Drive. 2020 to 2024  February 13, 2024 – Cumberland County Cape Fear Valley Medical Center ambulance …

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Eastern Air Lines Flight 212 Crash in Charlotte

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This is an expanded version of a Facebook posting on November 24, 2022, and a blogs archive posting (PDF) from April 8, 2010. Courtesy of the Don Sturkey Photographic Materials (P0070), North Carolina Collection, UNC-Chapel Hill Library, from Fatal Distraction by Philip Gerard in Our State magazine. Contents Introduction Timeline Charlotte Fire Department Narrative Introduction On …

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