Firefighters Use Snow Cat In Medical Emergency

ELIZABETH, Colo. (CBS4)- Firefighters in Elizabeth used a snow cat to crawl over deep drifts of snow to get to a person who needed to be rushed to the hospital.

Elizabeth Fire has a contract to use the snow cat during the winter months. Some firefighters have completed 40 hours of extensive training in order to operate the equipment.

The snow cat enables the fire department a quicker response to incidents where the snow is too deep because it hasn't been plowed. That was the case on Thursday night.

The snow cat is large enough to house firefighters, paramedics and non-ambulatory patients lying on a backboard.

Although the information about the medical emergency cannot be released, the person was rushed to the hospital with the snow cat.

"It would have taken over an hour to clear the path with a plow truck to enable our fire apparatus access to the house. The snow cat was able to access the house in minutes and get the patient medical care. The snow cat is a great benefit to our department and community," said Elizabeth Fire Division Chief Heath Aldridge.