Sun Prairie Fire & EMS provides outstanding, patient-centered, pre-hospital care.
11/14/2025
This morning at 10 a.m., Med Unit 889 went into service at EMS Station 1. This is the first of three brand new units recently received from Braun Ambulances that were ordered in 2022 as replacements. A push in ceremony was held this morning, which is a long standing tradition in the fire service dating back to the days of horse drawn carriages. Horses were not capable of backing in the carriages into the stations, so firefighters would push the carriages into position. Today, the symbolic gesture is a way of welcoming a new apparatus into service.
11/04/2025
Sun Prairie Fire & EMS - EMS Division
October in a glance
10/31/2025
🎃🚒 Trick-or-Treat with Your Public Safety Partners! 🚑👻
Sun Prairie Fire & EMS is out in Marshall tonight with our amazing public safety partners for Trick-or-Treat at the Marshall Public Library! 📚🍬
Stop by, say hi, and grab some treats! We’d love to see your costumes and share a safe and fun Halloween evening with the community. 🎉
&EMS
10/31/2025
Due to nationwide staffing shortage, any child dressed like a firefighter/EMT on Halloween🎃 will be required to pick up a shift!!
10/28/2025
❤️🚒 National First Responders Day 🚑💙
Today, we pause to honor the people who answer the call—day or night, in every kind of weather, often on the hardest days of someone’s life.
To our firefighters, paramedics, EMTs, dispatchers, police officers, and every member of the emergency services family: thank you. You carry the weight of other people’s worst moments with strength, skill, and heart.
At Sun Prairie Fire & EMS, we’re proud to stand shoulder to shoulder with our partners and our community. Every alarm, every response, every patient—it’s an honor to serve.
So today, if you see a first responder, take a moment to wave, smile, or simply say “thank you.” It means more than you know.
10/27/2025
🚑 TRAINING SPOTLIGHT: High-Fidelity Simulation – Motorcycle vs. Deer Crash 🦌🏍️
Startng out their Monday, Sun Prairie Fire & EMS paramedics participated in a high-fidelity simulation designed to replicate a complex and high-risk scenario: a motorcycle collision with a deer on a rural roadway.
These simulations are more than just training—they're critical opportunities for our crews to sharpen their clinical skills, decision-making, and teamwork in a controlled, yet realistic environment. From managing traumatic injuries and rapid extrication to coordinating a tea during transport, every detail was designed to mirror the challenges we face in the field.
🎯 Why it matters:
High-fidelity simulations allow our paramedics to:
• Practice life-saving interventions under pressure
• Improve communication and coordination
• Identify areas for growth in a safe learning space
• Stay prepared for the unexpected
We train hard so we’re ready when seconds count. 💪 Thank you to our dedicated team for always striving for excellence in patient care and public safety.
10/25/2025
UPDATE: Our medics thrive in multiple trainings and are training all the time with new technology and medicines. They step up to help in any situation. On Friday, October 24th our medics stepped up to rescue a kitten, checked the health of the kitchen and found a foster home for this cute kitten. The foster family keeps us updated on the health of this kitten. When the kitten was rescued it weighed 144g, as of today the kitten weighs 254g.
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Friday, October 24th, the paramedics on shift, responded to assist Sun Prairie Police Department with an animal complaint. As the crew was in the area returning from a call and animal control was out on another call, the crew decided to stop to see if they could assist. The crew was able to get to and rescue a baby kitten out from under a deck. The crew took the kitten back to the station to check over the kittens' health and feed the kitten. The kitten is doing good and placed in a foster home.
10/16/2025
PLEASE WELCOME OUR NEWEST EMS MEMBERS.
We are excited to be working with them and help them achieve their goals!
10/11/2025
🚨 Simulation Saturday at Sun Prairie Fire & EMS! 🚨
Today, our B-Shift Paramedics took part in a high-fidelity simulation designed to sharpen their life-saving skills in a controlled, realistic environment. These simulations mimic the high-pressure scenarios our crews face in the field—giving them the opportunity to practice critical thinking, teamwork, and advanced medical interventions without the real-world risk.
👨🚒 Why is this training so important?
Because when seconds count, preparation matters. High-fidelity simulations:
✅ Reinforce clinical decision-making
✅ Improve communication under pressure
✅ Build muscle memory for rare but critical procedures
✅ Help teams identify and correct potential gaps in care
We train like lives depend on it—because they do. 💪
10/05/2025
10/03/2025
🔧 Behind the Build: Touring Braun Ambulances 🚑
This week, members of Sun Prairie Fire & EMS had the opportunity to tour the Braun Ambulance manufacturing facility, where our three new ambulances were recently built.
Getting a firsthand look at the manufacturing process that went into them allows us to better understand the craftsmanship, engineering, and safety features that go into each unit. It also gives us the chance to ask questions, verify specifications, and ensure that every detail aligns with the needs of our department and community.
By observing the process from the ground up, we’re not just receiving vehicles—we’re gaining insight that helps us make informed decisions and advocate for the best tools to serve Sun Prairie. It’s another way we stay committed to transparency, quality, and responsible use of public funds.
We’re excited to see these ambulances come to life and even more excited to put them to work for the people we serve.
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For much of the City of Sun Prairie’s history, the Police Department was responsible for responding to medical emergencies in the community and providing ambulance transportation for the sick and injured. Then, in the late 1970s, Dane County published its plan for Ambulance Districts, intent on developing the outline by which Emergency Medical Services could be delivered to all residents of Dane County. In June of 1977, then Police Lieutenant Carlyle Wilkinson (who’d been managing the volunteer ambulance service at the time) recommended to the City Council that it develop its own ambulance service. Thus, the Sun Prairie Emergency Medical Services agency began in October of 1977.
By early 1978, there were 34 volunteers on the Sun Prairie EMS roster, including current Alderperson Mary Polenske and current Mayor Paul Esser. In 1985, volunteer EMT Don Wadyka was appointed to be the very first EMS Director. Working limited hours and paid a stipend, he was succeeded by Director Mary Polenske in 1990, who, due to the agency’s growth and increased demand for service, later became the first full-time Director.
Since its inception, Sun Prairie EMS volunteers dedicated themselves to providing emergency care and transportation to the sick and injured for over 20 years, and relied on nearby City of Madison Fire Department for assistance with more serious incidents when paramedic-level care was necessary. In early 2000s, the City of Madison notified the City of Sun Prairie that it was no longer able to provide paramedic-level care following the current business model; and so on August 9, 2004 the City of Sun Prairie took the bold step of increasing its EMS service delivery to paramedic level and becoming a full-time career agency. Director Polenske led the agency through this transition and was instrumental in positioning Sun Prairie EMS for a healthy and sustainable future.
When Director Polenske retired in 2008, EMS Director James “Kep” Anderson joined the team. At the beginning of the economic recession, demand for EMS services dipped by just over 100 calls annually and the agency was challenged to continue to meet the community’s needs on a tight budget. By 2016, the economy had recovered, the City was growing again, and demand for EMS increased by 15%. In 2017, the City restructured the EMS Department and Training Officer Eric Lang took over day-to-day managment of the Department while a nationwide search was conducted for a new EMS Chief. In January 2018, EMS Chief Brian Goff took the helm and looks forward to the challenges of leading the agency through the City’s continued growth and meeting the ever-changing needs of a dynamic and diverse community.
Since its beginning, the City of Sun Prairie Emergency Medical Services department has adapted to an ever-growing demand for services from both within the City limits, as well as from its neighbors. Today, the Sun Prairie EMS department protects approximately 35,500 citizens in a 46 square mile area. The paramedics at Sun Prairie EMS respond to almost 3,000 calls for service annually in the City of Sun Prairie, the Town of Bristol, and neighboring areas of DeForest, Marshall, and Madison. For many of its neighbors to the north, west, and east, Sun Prairie EMS is the only advanced-life-support provider, and is a critical public safety partner.
