TOWER — Tower Ambulance Service staff were on hand Monday to welcome the first shift of a new emergency services program, which is being funded by a one-time $2.7 million state grant.
The program will provide advanced life support. Advanced care is requested for serious medical injuries, cardiac events, strokes, and pediatric emergencies.
Virginia Fire Department Paramedic Mike Ruedebusch was taking the first 12-hour shift in the Tower area, while another paramedic from Virginia was splitting time between the Cook, Orr, and Nett Lake ambulance services.
Ruedebusch was getting the grand tour of the Tower Ambulance garage, which was led by EMT Steve Freshour and interim ambulance supervisor Jen McDonough. He also planned to spend some time getting more familiar with the coverage area while waiting for any calls.
“We are excited to have the program,” said McDonough.
“Tower ambulance will still be fully staffed,” she noted, and said the ambulance service’s medical director has set what calls the sprint medic would respond to.
“But we can always call them in if we feel they are needed,” said McDonough.
When the ambulance gets called out on an emergency call, the sprint medic will also respond, if needed, and then work with the local ambulance service on scene to provide care. The sprint medic is then able to travel with the patient in the local ambulance, providing advanced medical care on the way to the hospital.
In 2025, the Tower Ambulance requested ALS services 66 times, about 13.7 percent of all calls and a little more than one call per week. But having the sprint medic on call means that care will be available much sooner than waiting for the ambulance to arrive from Virginia or Ely.
McDonough said the sprint medics will also be attending the ambulance services regular training.
“Personally, I am looking to learn a lot from them,” she said.
Virginia Deputy Fire Chief Erik Jonassen was also in Tower on Monday before heading to Cook for the launch of this innovative program. He will oversee the data reporting on the project, compile monthly reports detailing response times, meet monthly with the ambulance supervisors covered by the program, and also conduct surveys of the experiences of the patients served, as well as survey the ambulance and other emergency responders involved to see how the program is working. At the end of the trial period in June 2027, the state office in charge of emergency services will be evaluating the data to determine if additional funding will be provided, he said.
The new system got its first callout on Jan. 20. And while the call only required basic life support level of care, this was the first opportunity for the ambulance team to work cooperatively under the new system.
“The teams between Tower ambulance and Virginia worked really well together and the patient was safely transferred through Tower ambulance as BLS,” said McDonough.
The program and its funding grew from a series of meetings held over the past few years to address the issues facing rural ambulance services.
“The rural ambulance crisis on the Range has been building for years, and it was clear we needed to try something new,” said state Senator Grant Hauschild. “The sprint medic pilot is an innovative, common-sense approach that could provide advanced lifesaving care to people while an ambulance is on the way, especially in our more rural areas.”
Hauschild said this effort grew directly from the EMS Taskforce listening sessions.
“I’m grateful to the local partners who stepped up to make this pilot possible and willing to work together to keep improving emergency care for our region,” he said.
Paramedics from the Virginia department will be rotating through the shifts, staffed from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., Monday through Friday, in both areas. Jonassen said the paramedics voluntarily sign up for the shifts outside of their regular work hours, earning overtime pay. The costs of the salaries are all funded through the state grant, he said.
The program involved the purchase of two SUVs, which are now equipped with ALS equipment such as cardiac monitors, ventilators, IVs, and certain medications including narcotics for pain relief. The sprint medics are also storing equipment and medical supplies at area ambulance halls. Their role will be to roam the service area, ready to respond to emergency calls immediately, while the partnering primary ambulance service travels to the scene in an ambulance. As with all emergency responders in the county, sprint medics’ responses will be coordinated through St. Louis County 911.
“Our paramedics are excited to be part of this pilot program to provide a higher level of care for residents in remote areas,” said Jonassen. “At the same time, I want to assure residents of Virginia that our participation will not affect our service within the city and all costs are covered by the state of Minnesota.”
The St. Louis County Sheriff’s Office serves as fiscal agent for the program. Similar funding also was provided for a similar pilot program serving Otter Tail and Grant counties.