In 1974 a group of local citizens banded together to provide emergency ambulance transport for the Greater Randolph region due to a lack of service in the area. This group started as an all-volunteer organization known as the Schertz Area Facility for Emergency Services. This was a joint effort of this volunteer group, along with the City of Schertz, and several other surrounding cities. Very quickly the organization realized that this endeavor could not be handled alone and they reached out to the City of Schertz for help. Since that time, the City of Schertz has operated the EMS Department (known as SAFES EMS until 2001) and the Schertz Area Facility for Emergency Services (SAFES, Inc.) has worked to recruit volunteers, raise money for equipment, and to provide training.

EMS began responding to calls with a small group of volunteers who would respond from home, pick up the ambulance (which was a hearse) and respond to wherever help was needed. This has grown into a paid professional organization comprised of 52 personnel to include 20 full-time uniformed staff, 16 part-time uniformed staff, 15 volunteers, and 2 administrative positions who staff 3 Mobile Intensive Care Unit ambulances 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

EMS began housing its original hearse ambulance in a garage built onto the side of the Schertz Volunteer Fire Department building. Today, we are headquartered in a large, 4-bay station that provides all of our living and support functions needed to properly carry out our duties everyday. We also house a crew in our Universal City station that is located at the Universal City Fire Department. Construction is currently in progress on a second Public Safety Building in Schertz that will function as EMS’s third station.

As the lead EMS agency in the Randolph Region EMS Association, Schertz EMS, in conjunction with its 7 First Responder agencies, provides service to 8 cities and parts of 3 unincorporated counties to answer over 3,600 requests for service annually.