Mariah Whitcomb, deputy chief of the Thetford, Vt., Volunteer Fire Department and the department's FAST squad leader, has been named 2017 EMS Educator of the Year. 
Mariah Whitcomb, deputy chief of the Thetford, Vt., Volunteer Fire Department and the department's FAST squad leader, has been named 2017 EMS Educator of the Year. 

Thetford — The Thetford FAST Squad and its leader have received statewide awards from the Vermont Emergency Medical Services office.

The FAST Squad, which is part of the Thetford Volunteer Fire Department, was named 2017 Vermont First Response Service of the year.

The award recognizes licensed, Vermont-based EMS organizations for their excellence in operations and service to their communities, according to a news release from the fire department.

Mariah Whitcomb, the department’s deputy chief and FAST squad leader, was named 2017 EMS Educator of the Year. Whitcomb has belonged to the FAST squad and fire department for 20 years.

“We are honored and humbled to have our department membership’s high level of professionalism and service to our community recognized by those who nominated us” and the state’s EMS office, the release said. “Additionally, we are thrilled to have one of our own recognized for her dedication to providing innovative, quality education throughout Vermont.”

A formal awards ceremony will be held during the Vermont Health Care and EMS Preparedness Conference in November in Burlington.

— Staff report