Adding to what has become a historic year of international support for Chapala’s civil protection and firefighting squad (UPCB), the Rotary Club of Playa Venice Sunrise recently donated a second-hand ambulance to beef up the company’s emergency rescue fleet.
UPCB chief Lorenzo Antonio Salazar and fellow officer Mario Gonzalez received the keys to the 2003 model Ford wagon April 20 in Los Angeles, California. The firemen then set off on the long drive south from the border, arriving home four days later.
Salazar reports that the distinctive turquoise blue vehicle, valued at about 180,000 pesos, was delivered in excellent mechanical condition and equipped with a defibrillator. He estimates it will cost around 25,000 pesos to purchase sirens, a stretcher, neck braces and other essential gear.
The transfer was arranged through a partnership between the Playa Venice Sunrise Rotarians and the club’s lakeside sister organization, forged by the late Donald R. Culton, who died on April 2.