In a medical emergency minutes can make the difference between life and death.
The Martinsville Fire Department has a new ambulance that is making the life saving process easier and safer.
It's loud and looks funny.
"It enhances the visibility of the truck when it's out on the street," said Michael Bradshaw with the Martinsville Fire Department.
But it's what's on the inside of this new ambulance at the Martinsville Fire Department that's impressive.
"It's just a totally different look," Bradshaw said.
"I'm about 6'4" and I can pretty much stand up in here. That's another great feature for you guys," said WDBJ7's Justin Ward.
"It is great. We've got several guys that's pretty tall and they're able to walk around in the truck now without having to worry about hitting their head or ducking over," Bradshaw said.
A small refrigerator keeps I-V fluids and water chilled and a redesigned interior are just what emergency crews wanted.
They designed the entire truck themselves.
"We met with various engineering groups, electrical, design, heating and air guys, all those folks to make sure this new box design was even feasible. They turned around and said year we can do it and would like to. It's pretty unique, it's something different," said Kris Shrader, Martinsville Fire Department's Deputy Fire Chief.
The department got the idea after medics noticed safety flaws for themselves in older ambulances.
Now medics have three seats with harnesses that move in any direction and an automated stretcher for easy loading and unloading.
"It supports up to 780 pounds. So we virtually don't have to do any more heavy lifting anymore," Bradshaw said.
Shrader believes the only ambulance similar to this one is at Carilion Clinic in Roanoke.
The Martinsville Fire Department is working to add another vehicle within the next five years.
