September 5, 2023
McKenzie County Ambulance Service celebrates 50 years of service
Kristen Jones
Farmer Staff Writer
The McKenzie County Ambulance service has officially been in service for 50 years. Jan Riely remembers that time and told the story of how the ambulance service began, including using an old hearse for the first ambulance.
In 1973, Ken Will was the sheriff and was motivated to get the medical training needed to be an emergency medical technician (EMT) because he saw the need for one in the area.
Jan explained that she worked for Will and was good friends with him and his wife, so when he gathered a group together, she was included as well as a large variety of people from all sectors of the community.