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Jan. 4--ALTON -- A brand-new ambulance is on the road, made possible through the Duck Pluckers, Deer Skinners and Fish Hookers Ball.

The 2010 Ford E350 Super Duty truck with an extended cab rides comfortably and smoothly for emergency medical workers and gives them more space to work with patients than other ambulances in Alton Memorial Hospital's fleet, comprised of three van and now seven truck models.

Hunters and fishermen in the "Duck Pluckers" group raised nearly $60,000 for the ambulance, which covered half of its $120,000 cost. A Duck Pluckers sponsorship logo emblazons the exterior backdoor of the ambulance since the group met the challenge by Alton Memorial President David Braasch to raise half the funds in exchange for the logo. Alton Memorial's capital budget covered the other half of the cost.

"Seeing the 'Duck Pluckers' ambulance will be a constant reminder of the fun we had contributing toward technology that will save lives," said the ball's co-chair, Mary Lou Cousley.

The emergency vehicle's advanced technology allows for 12 lead EKG results to be transmitted to a physician while the ambulance is en route to the hospital. Other features include a hydraulic stretcher for accommodating patients in excess of 600 pounds and a hand held scanner, which scans a patient's driver's license and transmits information to a hospital computer, so pertinent medical information reaches the hospital before the patient.

Also, a different stretcher arrangement helps inside the ambulance.

"There's a lot of room with a center-mounted stretcher," said Denny Stanford, manager of the Alton Memorial Hospital EMS Department and the area's only hospital ambulance service covering 350 square miles.

The center-mount stretcher allows 4-square-feet more room as opposed to Alton Memorial's nine other ambulances that have side-mounted stretchers. Typical box-unit model ambulances are bigger than a van unit, but Alton Memorial's box units still are 1-square-foot smaller than the new box-unit vehicle.

Stanford, also an emergency medical services crewmember, oversees and schedules the department's 53 employees. He has been with Alton Memorial's ambulance service for 22 of its 23 years. Stanford, who has been in EMS for 33 years, was first to drive the ambulance that went into service Tuesday afternoon.

"Ambulance drivers are not supposed to go beyond the posted speed limit but this ambulance is still good at 70 miles per hour," said Stanford who drove the vehicle to and from Springfield Monday where it underwent state inspection by the Department of Public Health.