History

1986

The Orangeburg County Emergency Medical Services (OCEMS) came into existence in July of 1986. The service was started by its first director, John Smith, who at the time was also the Emergency Services Director for Orangeburg County. The first vehicles in the OCEMS fleet were 3 van-type ambulances, all operating out of one station which was located in the basement of the Orangeburg County courthouse.

1990

As the volume of emergency calls increased and the demand for services across the expanse of Orangeburg County grew, the EMS division began working to meet the needs of the people. OCEMS opened two new substations in 1990 to better serve citizens, installing one in Santee and another in Neeses.

1992

In 1992, Orangeburg County hired its second EMS director, Jimmy McMillan, who came to the County from the State of South Carolina’s Department of Health and Environmental Control office. While under the direction of McMillan, the service moved from the basement of the courthouse to its next home in the County’s former administration building on Doyle Street.

1994

Orangeburg County hired Don Lundy to become its third EMS director in 1994. Lundy came to Orangeburg by way of Greenville County’s EMS operation, and prior to that he had served as an EMS director in the state of Florida. During Lundy’s tenure, EMS in Orangeburg County grew even more and moved into its current base of operations located on Ellis Avenue. Not long after this, a third substation was deployed in Holly Hill on Branchdale Highway to cover the eastern portion of Orangeburg County.

2000

In 2000, Orangeburg County hired Danny Rivers, its fourth and current EMS Director. Under the direction of Rivers, the service has continued to grow, adding a sixth unit to the primary service line and having received permission to open a fifth substation in the Bowman area.

Present Day

OCEMS currently has 43 full-time positions and 20 for the part-time roster. OCEMS runs a 3 shift rotation, (A,B,C) with 13 people per shift. OCEMS also includes the 911 dispatchers, who work a 12 hour shift rotation.

OCMES staffs six ambulances on a 24 hour, 7 days a week basis, and covers the entire county of 1,100 square miles. The service runs all Advanced Life Support units when possible. Each ambulance is staffed with a paramedic and EMT-I, or EMT-B. All street employees work a 24-48 hour schedule which means the crews work 24 hours on, and will be off for the next 48 hours. OCEMS responds to over 12,000 medical calls annually.