When you call 911 for a medical emergency, the first crew to arrive may be in an ambulance or a fire engine. That’s because both Prescott Fire Department and Central Arizona Fire and Medical Authority (CAFMA) fire engines are always staffed by at least one firefighter-paramedic, and the trucks are loaded with all the same medical gear used by paramedics in a LifeLine Ambulance. In the hierarchy of what’s known as pre-hospital care, paramedics are at the top. Arizona currently certifies just two levels of medical first responders, emergency medical technicians (EMT, also known in Arizona as emergency medical care technicians, or EMCT) and paramedics, but some states have several other designations in between those. EMTs generally perform basic life-support functions, but nothing invasive. They have less training, about 120 to 150 hours, than paramedics