In the early years, there was no ambulance service in this part of Bergen County. In those "good old days," anyone unlucky enough to need to go to the hospital had to travel to Hackensack Hospital. Such a trip took place in three stages. First, the patient had to be transported to the Railroad Station in either a buggy or a sleigh, depending on the weather conditions, on a makeshift litter. When the train arrived, the patient was placed in the baggage car for the trip to the train station in Hackensack nearest the hospital. Finally, if the patient survived this trip they were then removed from the baggage car and taken to the hospital in a buggy or sleigh. In the early nineteen hundreds came the gasoline engine bringing the first ambulance to Bergen County. Such a vehicle was purchased by Hackensack Hospital. The ambulance covered so many towns that you had to "pray" it was not in use in another town or being repaired as it often was, and of course, it was a thirteen-mile trip here and thirteen miles back to the hospital. Such was the type of service available until the late thirties.

In 1938, a group of civic-minded residents who were members of the Park Ridge Fire Department got together and raised the funds necessary to purchase an ambulance. These men organized the Park Ridge Fireman's Tri-Boro Ambulance Corps, purchased the first ambulance, a La Salle, and proceeded to recruit and train volunteers to serve as attendants.

In 1959 the Corps became known as the Tri-Boro Ambulance Service. It now had volunteers from the three communities making up the Tri-Boro area. In 1965 a second ambulance was purchased to keep pace with the growth of the Tri-Boro Community. In 2010 the name was again changed to TriBoro Volunteer Ambulance Corps. Today the Tri-Boro Volunteer Ambulance Corps is stationed at Mill Road and Mill Lane. Today's members are trained EMTs putting in some 250 hours plus in training. They currently have three "state of the art" ambulances and are often assisted by an ALS (Advanced Life Support) unit which are dispatched from area hospitals. The ambulance corps currently has some 62 members, active and inactive. They operate by assigning crews to cover specific hours, every 24 hours. If more than one ambulance is needed, this requires a "general call". This type of call relies on the availability of off-duty members. As in almost every community, the daytime demand for members is high. Currently, there is a complex system of Mutual Aid that covers the Pascack Valley towns. When one town cannot get an ambulance in service another town with an ambulance crew available will answer the call.

In addition to answering calls for help, the corps can always be seen at sporting events on one of the many fields within the Tri-Boro communities, at community events, town picnics, fireworks, and other special events.
We need additional members so that we may continue to provide the highest level of care possible. Because of the increased demand for ambulance service, we are especially in need of daytime members. For an online application form click here.

Tri-Boro Volunteer Ambulance Corps is an independent non-profit organization dedicated to providing emergency medical services (EMS), non-emergency ambulance transportation and safety training to the Tri-Boro community
We are staffed solely by volunteers and are funded mainly through contributions and the generous support of the three municipal governments. All of our services are provided free of charge. The Corp is run by Officers and a Board of Governors (BOG). Click on Officers for a listing of the current line officers and BOG members.