ST. CLOUD -- This is National EMS week. Gold Cross Ambulance provides those emergency medical services for a large majority of central Minnesotans.

Operations supervisor Elie Deeb says they cover 500 to 600 square miles. He says they have seven trucks stationed in the St. Cloud area, one in Little Falls and one in Litchfield.

We also have our rigs in St. Cloud scattered throughout.  We have posting locations in St. Joe, Rockville, Sartell, Sauk Rapids, we're at the COP house, and at the airport.

Deeb says Gold Cross has about 110 employees. They handle about 22,000 calls for service each year.

Deeb says every day they are challenged to work with people who are often times in a crisis.

At people's worst time.  But you have to step up, be the leader, take control of the situation and provide the best medical care that you can, and get them to the hospital.  And, working with St. Cloud fire and police and I think we all do that very well.

Gold Cross Ambulance has been owned by the Mayo Clinic since 1994.

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