State deploys 26 new ambulances, 20 mobile ICUs for free services

Gives 10 Hilux vehicles, 12 motorcycles to police

Lagos State government yesterday commissioned additional 26 ambulances and 20 Mobile Intensive Care Units (MICUs) for public use.

The new addition brings to a total of 33 MICUs that are now offering emergency free services to Lagosians, who call the 112 toll-free line.

In a related development, the state government has also given 10 Hilux vehicles and 12 patrol motorcycles to men of the Nigerian police in the state.

Governor Akinwunmi Ambode, at the handing over ceremony, held at the Ikeja State House yesterday, said the commissioning was in partial fulfillment of his inaugural promise to implement programmes that make life simpler, easier and happier for our people.

Ambode told a gathering of politicians, civil servants and the state healthcare family, that the Free Ambulance Service was a demonstration of his commitment to the pledge and in consonance with his administration’s mantra of running a government of “continuity with improvement.”

He said the Free Ambulance Service would bring quality health service closer to the people, particularly those in emergency situations or conditions.

Permanent Secretary of the Lagos State Ministry of Health, Modele Osunkiyesi said the commissioning was a product of recommendations made at a health stakeholders’ forum some 41 days ago, to further improve care services at the grassroots.

Director of LASAMBUS, Dr. Ibrahim Mustapha, added that the enlarged fleet would help response time and save lives, even as communities can begin to take ownership of the facilities.

Receiving the 10 Hilux vehicles and patrol motorcycle, State Commissioner of Police, Fatai Owoseni, on behalf of the Inspector General of Police (IGP), said the police would use the gesture to improve security and increase police feasibility in the state.