If you see a firefighter rescuing residents from a burning house or building, you should know that, in most of Minnesota, that firefighter is probably a volunteer. The same may be true of the emergency medical technician you see assisting someone.
Inver Grove Heights Fire Chief Judy Thill told the House Taxes Committee Tuesday that “92 percent of our firefighters in Minnesota are volunteers. We have the second highest percentage of volunteers in the nation.” The Minnesota Ambulance Association’s Legislative Affairs Director Buck McAlpin added, “About 62 percent of our 28,000 EMTs and paramedics in Minnesota are volunteers.”