Randolph County Emergency Medical Services has two ambulances in the Archdale-Trinity area, one on Balfour Drive in Archdale and one at the Guil-Rand fire station on Welborn Road in Trinity. Both trucks are fully stocked and in good shape.

“The one in Trinity is only a 12-hour truck, though,” said Donovan Davis, director of Randolph County’s department of emergency services. “It comes in at 8 a.m. and leaves at 8 p.m.”

That means that after hours, the closest paramedic responders are in Randleman. That is part of the reason why Randolph County has franchises with Piedmont Triad Ambulance and Rescue.

“They provide a supplemental service,” Davis explained. “Randolph EMS is a paramedic service, but Piedmont Triad is an intermediate service.”

Intermediate services are ranked below that of a paramedic. They can handle broken bones and other similar situations, freeing up paramedics to respond to true emergencies.

PTAR began in 1971 as the High Point Rescue Squad. It provides basic life support, advanced life support, rescue service, convalescent transport services and “stand-by” service for special events in the Piedmont Triad area.

Davis said all emergency calls are routed through the county’s system and responders are dispatched based on that information.

Calls in the Archdale-Trinity area that do not require a paramedic level response are likely to be handled by PTAR.

The contract with PTAR is renegotiated every two years. It will be renegotiated in November.