The number of emergency responses by the Killingworth Ambulance Association jumped dramatically in 2021, but the cause of those calls did not.

As was the case in 2020, victims of falls led all responses, followed by sick persons and individuals with breathing problems. Those were the same three (though not in that order) that led all calls in 2020 when the KAA responded to 370 emergencies.

So nothing different there.

But look at the number of calls compiled by the KAA. There were 496 in 2021, a 34 percent increase over the previous year. Now look at the number of fall victims. There were 117 in 2021, or 23.6 percent of the total. There were 71 last year, or 19.2 percent of the total, and 75 the year before.

That’s a 64.7 percent hike in one year, and one that’s not easy to explain.

“We didn’t pass on as many calls last year,” said Mike Haaga, the KAA’s chief of service, searching for an explanation, “so that made our call volume higher. Second, we did more mutual-aid calls to other towns. I don’t know if there was a COVID ‘rebound,’ where people weren’t calling the ambulance (in 2020) because of COVID and then thought it had subsided. But they may have been calling for more things.”

That might explain the number of calls for sick persons. That figure jumped from 36 in 2020 (9.7 percent) to 62 one year later, or 12.3 percent of the total. Breathing problems, however, did not increase. In fact, they were unchanged. Where there were 36 in 2020, there were 36 the following year.

What follows are the Top Five KAA calls for 2021:

1. Fall victims … 117 (23.6)
2. Sick persons …62 (12.3)
3. Breathing problems … 36 (7.3)
4. Chest pain … 26 (5.2)
5. Altered mental status … 25 (5.0)

What’s intriguing about these figures is that, for the first time in years, traffic accidents didn’t make the Top Five. Instead, they were sixth with 25 responses, or 4.8 percent of the total.  In 2019, for example, they were second, with 35 calls (9.9 percent).

But that was before COVID arrived.

Here’s a comparison with the Top Five of 2020:

1. Fall victims … 71 (19.2)
2. Breathing problems …. 36 (9.7)
3. Sick persons … 35 (9.5)
4. Not entered … 32 (8.6)
5. Traffic accidents … 25 (6.8)

Also of interest in 2021 were responses for unconscious persons or individuals who fainted. In 2020, there were only five. That number jumped to 12 one year later, or 2.4 percent of the total and one more than there were in 2019 (11).

KAA figures are kept annually, with calls recorded electronically on patient-care reports by EMTs on the scene.

For the first time in two years – or since the outbreak of COVID – the Killingworth Ambulance Association will hold a CPR class this Friday, May 6, at its Route 81 headquarters.

The class begins at 6 p.m. and is expected to last approximately three hours.

As was the case prior to COVID, Don McDougall will serve as an instructor. McDougall, who marks his 51^st anniversary with the KAA this summer, tried to hold a class in 2020 but cancelled it after the COVID outbreak.

He said he normally does three to four classes per year.

“People ask: Why should I take it?’ “ McDougall said of CPR. “The great percentage of heart attacks happen at home, and you could be the only person there. If you call an ambulance, it could be 10-15 minutes before somebody gets there. In the meantime, you could be saving a loved one or family member.”

McDougall speaks from experience. Outside of the KAA, he said, he’s had three experiences with heart-attack victims. The first was when he was a pre-teen visiting grandparents in Maine. Descending a set of stairs, McDougall said he turned to see his grandfather – who had followed him down the steps — fall to the floor.

He had suffered a heart attack and later died.

“If somebody had known what to do,” he said, “we might have been able to do something.”

Friday’s CPR class is free for Killingworth residents. All non-residents will be required to pay a $25 fee.

For more information, please contact the Killingworth Ambulance Association at (860) 663-2450.

(Above photo: Trevor Hines (R) with East Lyme Police Sgt. Jared Priest)

Four years ago, Trevor Hines was one of five high-school seniors to receive Killingworth Ambulance Association scholarships. A student at Haddam-Killingworth High, he said then that he planned to pursue a criminal justice degree at the University of New Haven and hoped to work with local law enforcement.

So what happened? What happened is that Trevor Hines is doing just that.

Now 22, he graduates from UNH this summer after completing an undergraduate degree in criminal justice and an internship this semester that includes 150 hours of work with the East Lyme Police Department.

“I’m grateful,” he said, one afternoon over lunch at the local Dunkin’ Donuts. “I’m glad I chose what I chose. I think it’s a really interesting profession.”

Hines conceded he wasn’t always so certain. Nobody in his immediate family has a background in law enforcement. His father works construction. His mother once taught pre-school children. Older brother Jackson works with his Dad, while younger brother Cameron is still in college. So Trevor Hines is something of an outlier … at least within the family … and it has more to do with a friend he met when he began high school than it did a family member.

“My friend’s Dad was a (State) Trooper in Troop F (Westbrook),” he said. “He always had the car around and would talk to us about work. And he was always helping people, which I thought was interesting.”

That’s when Hines started thinking about a career in law enforcement. By the time he was a high-school senior, he believed it was something he’d like to pursue. So he did. He enrolled at UNH, so highly regarded as a leader in criminal-justice programs that it was once dubbed “The Cop Shop,” and majored in — what else? — criminal justice.

Four years later, he has no regrets — especially now that he’s immersed in an internship set up through UNH’s Career Development Center.

It has Hines at the East Lyme Police Department Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays of each week, arriving somewhere around 9 each morning and sticking around until 3:30 p.m. After checking in with dispatch, he could be called on to file papers, go over reports or tag along with an officer on what are called “ride-alongs,” with Hines in the passenger seat to serve as an observer.

He doesn’t wear a uniform. He is not armed. He is a college intern in civilian clothes who looks no different than he would at school … except for a bullet-proof vest he’s required to wear.

“He responds to calls with officers,” said East Lyme Lt. Dana Jezierski, with the East Lyme police 16 years. “If it’s something that’s not high-risk, he’s able to get out of the car and watch the investigation or whatever crime is being reported.

“He’s very responsible. He’s very mature. And he’s always asking questions, which shows he has an interest. He gets along great with the officers he rides with, and they speak highly of him.”

According to Jezierski, the department has run its internship for years, usually with Mitchell College of New London. Interest in the program, she said, is increasing, with two interns from Endicott College due this summer.

“We have them come in and talk about their goals for the internship and what the police department can offer them” she said. “With Trevor, he was interested in law enforcement. He wanted a better understanding of law enforcement and how it works.”

Apparently, he found what he was after.

“What I like most about this major is the internship,” Hines said. “I get to see how things are processed and how they do things, like how they communicate with dispatch. Seeing everything first-hand instead of hearing about it in the classroom is very useful. It’s like getting hands-on work.

Trevor Hines (second from L) at HKHS in 2018.

“For me to be able to go on ‘ride-alongs’ now and to be able to think about it, and say, ‘Hey, “I’m really enjoying this’ … that’s important. A lot of schools don’t make you do an internship. So I really appreciate (UNH) putting you in a position to decide whether you really like it or not.”

Memo to UNH: He likes it.

Once upon a time, however, there was a feeling that Hines might want to pursue another career, with his grandfather, Jim Lally, saying he thought his grandson might become a game warden “because he loves the outdoors.” But there’s not much talk of that now. In fact, in two separate conversations over the past week, he never mentioned it. He spoke only of police work.

“He has a good sense of right and wrong,” his mother, Kristen Hines, said. “I think that would be something that’s a strength for him (in law enforcement). He really enjoys his classes (at UNH) and seems to have so much to tell us about case study and law. But he’s been enjoying this (internship). It’s been eye-opening for him. It’s his first chance to get one-on-one time to be involved with what he loves.”

So what’s next? Hines, who started his internship in early March, has over 100 hours on the job. That means he has approximately three weeks left in East Lyme, after which he returns to UNH to complete his last semester with a full schedule. And then?  Well, then, he said, he has one “wrap-up class” during summer semester … then a diploma … then on to what he hopes is a career in local law enforcement.

“This experience,” he said of the internship, “has had more of an impact on … not what I want to do but where I want to do it. When you work in a smaller town, you definitely work with people who are more familiar with your face. They want to have conversations with you, as compared to bigger cities where it can be harder to achieve what you’d call community policing. So (I’d like to work in) something like East Lyme or maybe the State Police; something like Troop F where you could be a resident.

“I like to talk to people. I think growing up I was kind of shy, and that was something that was hard for me. But, as I got older, it was something I was more interested in. So I’ve been pretty happy with my choice. I definitely had my doubts along the way, but the internship has made me want to this more as opposed to before. Now that I’ve learned a lot of things and talked with police officers, I’m really excited about it.”

The Killingworth Ambulance Association is still receiving applications for its 2022 scholarships, but time is running out. They must be postmarked no later than Friday, April 15.

Applications are available to graduating seniors enrolled in private or public high schools – but only to residents of Killingworth who plan on continuing their educations at two-or-four-year institutions. In addition, applicants must meet the following criteria: 1) Major in the medical, emergency services (first, police, etc.) or other allied fields; 2) engage in community service and 3) maintain a GPA of 3.0 or higher in their high-school careers.

Applications are available at Haddam-Killingworth, Mercy and Xavier High Schools or may be obtained by clicking HERE. Killingworth residents who attend other schools are invited to apply, too.

The KAA has awarded 20 scholarships over the past four years, including 10 the past two. Last year’s winners were Jasmine Byrne, Ryan Luther, Sam Luther, Thomas Perry and Kayla Fordyce. All but Fordyce, who graduated from Mercy, attended Haddam-Killingworth High School. This year’s recipients will be announced later this spring.

For more information please contact the KAA at (860) 663-2450.

(L-R: 2021 HKHS winners — Jasmine Byrne, Ryan Luther, Sam Luther and Thomas Perry)

Attention, local high-school seniors: Consider this your first alert.

Applications for the Killingworth Ambulance Association’s 2022 scholarships are now available to graduating seniors enrolled in private or public high schools.

However, they’re available only to residents of Killingworth who plan on continuing their educations at two-or-four-year institutions. In addition, applicants must meet the following criteria: 1) Major in the medical, emergency services (first, police, etc.) or other allied fields; 2) engage in community service and 3) maintain a GPA of 3.0 or higher in their high-school careers.

Applications are available at Haddam-Killingworth, Mercy and Xavier High Schools.

Completed applications must be postmarked no later than Friday, April 15, with recipients announced later this spring. Upon completion of the first semester of a continuing institution a check will be mailed to the scholarship recipient.

The KAA has awarded 20 scholarships over the past four years, including 10 the past two. Last year’s winners were Jasmine Byrne, Ryan Luther, Sam Luther, Thomas Perry and Kayla Fordyce. All but Fordyce, who graduated from Mercy, attended Haddam-Killingworth High School.

For more information please contact the KAA at (860) 663-2450.

(Pictured above: Mary Robbenhaar-Fretz and James Fretz)

There’s a comical insurance ad on TV where homeowners are advised that they don’t need to become their parents. But try selling that to Killingworth’s Mary Robbenhaar-Fretz.

She knows better.

An EMT and member of the Killingworth Ambulance board of directors, she’s done more than follow her mother’s path most of her adult life. She traced it. Step … by step … by step.

At 30, she pursued her mother’s passion and went into nursing. Decades later she joined the ambulance association’s board. Just like her mother. Then, in 2018, she became an EMT. Just like her mother. Now she makes ambulance runs with her husband, James – Mary in the back, James at the wheel.

Just like her mother … and her Dad.

“You do kind of become your parents,” she said, laughing. “That’s frightening. But what’s really scary is when people around town – particularly the older ones – see me and call me Romanie.”

Romanie was her mother’s name. Romanie Klein-Robbenhaar. Her father was Dolph Klein-Robbenhaar. They met when Romanie was in nursing school in the Netherlands – Amsterdam, to be exact – and soon married. Emigrating to Canada when Mary’s mother was six months short of graduating, they settled in Ottawa and welcomed the first of their four children.

Her name was Mary.

Four years later, Romanie and Dolph moved again — this time to the United States. On the advice of Dolph’s brother, who lived in Killingworth, the family relocated here in 1963 – moving in with Mary’s uncle before finding a permanent home.

And that’s where our story begins.

Fast-forward to February, 1971, when Romanie and Dolph join a group of concerned residents to form the Killingworth Ambulance Association. Both become actively involved, first as board members and then as first responders — making ambulance runs together, with Dolph driving and Romanie in the back.

Sound familiar? It should.

“I have to say my Mom probably got my Dad into it,” Mary said. “He was so busy. He worked 13 hours a day, and they’d be on at night. He’d get home at 6:30, and they’d be on at 7. They were volunteers, and back then, you didn’t have to be as skilled and trained as EMTs are now.

“My Mom was definitely more into it than my Dad. She really loved the hands-on stuff. Her first run was a UPS driver who had a bee sting. That was before EpiPens, and she had to do CPR all the way to New Haven. He didn’t make it.”

Mary attended Morgan High School before moving on to Wesleyan University, where she was a political science major. She envisioned a career as a lawyer but first joined the Peace Corps, teaching children in Niger. That lasted a year. Then it was back to the United States, accompanying a boyfriend to Indiana where she was a youth program director at the local YMCA. Eventually, she found herself back in Killingworth, this time certain what she would pursue next.

Nursing.

“When I was in the Peace Corps,” she said, “I wrote an essay to get into Yale (School of Nursing). I was supposed to teach English in Niger. They were French-speaking kids, who spoke the local language. But they didn’t need to learn English. They needed to learn about good health care and nutrition. That’s when I decided come back and go into nursing.”

So she did. She gained an associate degree from Quinnipiac’s School of Nursing, then spent 10 years at Yale Hospital as a pediatric RN while working toward a master’s in nursing.

“My Mom was thrilled that I was a nurse,” Mary said. “It sort of fulfilled her dream.”

Three years after Romanie passed away in 2013, Mary joined the KAA board of directors. Two years later, she decided to become an EMT, like her mother and father. So she took the 160-hour course, passed the exam and was certified to do what her mother had done decades earlier.

“For the longest time,” Mary said, “I wanted to volunteer and give back. Then, when I retired in 2018, I thought: Now I have time to devote to this. Really, it was in memory of Mom. The organization meant a lot to her. If my Mom hadn’t been involved with it, I don’t know if I would.”

But she is.

So is husband James Fretz, a self-employed cabinet maker and architectural wood worker. He joined the board with Mary in 2016 and took the EMT course four years later during the COVID pandemic. Like his wife, he passed the exam, and now the two are on call for the KAA from 6 a.m.-6 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

“I probably influenced him,” Mary said, “but I didn’t really push it. I think he just kind of observed and knew we needed people. I said, ‘I just need a driver. If you would drive, it would make me so happy.’ So he took the course.”

He did more than that.

When the Killingworth Ambulance Association last fall celebrated its 50^th anniversary, it recognized the top three responders from 2020-21. Board president Dan O’Sullivan and EMT Lisa Anderson were two of them. James Fretz was the third, remarkable in that he wasn’t EMT certified until December, 2020.

“James has been an amazing addition to the KAA,” said O’ Sullivan. “Not only does he cover two days a week with his wife, but he is frequently found on late night calls or on other days when needed to complete a crew. He is a critical part of our team in delivering EMS service to the town.”

Husband-and-wife teams aren’t unusual at the KAA. Mike and Marguerite Haaga are EMTs who serve on the KAA’s board of directors – Mike as the chief of service; Marguerite as the vice-president. Board member Mark Clifton and wife Patty are EMTs, too. But a husband-and-wife team that followed every step – literally – of a mother and father? Rare, though Todd and Lara Hajek are close. Todd’s mother, Irene, is a former EMT and past president and vice president of the KAA board.

“I got involved because of Irene,” said Lara Hajek, an EMT whose brother, father and brother-in-law are – what else? — EMTs.

So forget that TV commercial. Like it or not, we do become our parents. Mary Robbenhaar-Fretz is proof.

“It’s kind of funny,” she said. “When you’re growing up, it’s the last thing you’re going to do, right?”

Apparently not.

The Killingworth Ambulance Association last year responded to 496 emergency calls, and if that seems like a lot it’s because it is.

It’s a one-year record.

According to figures kept by the KAA, the 496 responses are a 34 percent increase over the 370 of 2020 and a 40 percent jump from the 350 of 2019. Included were 138 fourth-quarter calls in 2021, a 36.6 percent increase from the 101 in 2020.

“It’s far and away the most we’ve ever had,” said chief of service Mike Haaga.

The ready explanation, it would seem, would be COVID, especially with the recent surge of the Omicron variant. But that’s not the case. In fact, most responses weren’t for persons complaining of COVID-like symptoms.

They were for victims of falls.

Sound familiar? It should. Most calls the past two years have been for falls. This time, however, the number increased significantly. Where there were 71 in 2020 and 75 the year before, that number vaulted to 117 in 2021 — or 23.6 percent of all calls for 2021 and nearly double anything else.

That’s consistent with figures from 2020, where falls comprised 19.2 percent of all responses and were more than double the figure for breathing problems, which was second at 9.2. It’s also consistent with nationwide figures. According to the National Floor Safety Institute, falls are the leading cause of emergency-room visits, accounting for over 8 million annually.

Want more? What follows are the five leading responses for KAA emergency service in 2021:

1. Falls – 117 (23.6 percent)
2. Sickness – 61 (12.3 percent).
3. Breathing problems – 36 (7.3 percent)
4. Chest Pain – 26 (5.2 percent)
5. Altered mental status – 25 (5.0 percent)

Of interest here is that where overall figures increased … and, in some cases, significantly … the number of responses for traffic accidents did not. The KAA responded to 24 in 2020 (6.8 percent), which ranked fifth. It responded to another 24 last year (4.8), which ranked sixth.

“I’m proud of the fact that we’re able to cover all these calls on a completely volunteer basis,” said Haaga. “We’re one of the few ambulance services around here that is completely volunteer. Just about all of the others have some period of time where they pay crews to cover.”

The KAA has 26 EMTs and two EMRs.

Remarkably, the KAA completed its record year with its ambulance out of service for a week due to repairs. Fortunately, the Clinton Volunteer Fire Company came to the rescue. Three times in the past two years it loaned the KAA a vehicle while the Killingworth ambulance was serviced.

“For a small volunteer service like ours, covering this large number of calls — and sharp increase in the number of calls — is a real tribute to all the responding EMTs,” said KAA president Dan O’Sullivan. “It is even more impressive when you factor in the risk to them, never knowing if the patient might also have COVID. I thank all the responders and their families for providing this critical service to the community.”

For the second time in the past six months, the Killingworth Ambulance Association has been forced to cancel its EMT classes. The course was scheduled to begin on Tuesday, Jan. 11, but after careful consideration the KAA’s chief of service, Mike Haaga, decided to shut it down.

The reason: Simple. Not enough students.

”Only two people,” said Haaga, who teaches the course with wife Marguerite, the KAA’s vice president. “I really wanted to run the class, and I thought about it all day (Thursday), but it’s such a time commitment for two people.”

According to Haaga, communications with a Connecticut state official indicated that attendance for recent EMT classes state-wide has declined substantially.

“Probably has to do with COVID,” Haaga said.

The KAA had hoped to initiate its annual fall course on Sept. 2, 2021, but cancelled that instruction due to a lack of participants. That marked the third consecutive autumn the KAA had to move or cancel its EMT course. In 2019, it was moved to January, 2020, because of insufficient enrollment. One year later, it was shut down because of the COVID pandemic. Then it was cancelled again last fall.

“Very disappointing,” said Haaga.

The last time a course was completed was in 2020, and that was a success. Ten students participated, with ten completing the course – including one remotely from Idaho – and six joining the KAA. Courses historically last three-and-a-half months, with classes held Tuesday and Thursday evenings, as well as five Saturdays.

No date has been set for future instruction.

“We’ll shoot for another fall class,” said Haaga.

When the Killingworth Ambulance Association responded to a call last month, people at the scene were confused. The vehicle that showed up wasn’t Killingworth’s customary red box ambulance. It was white. And it didn’t read “Killingworth.” It read “Clinton.”

“I thought Killingworth was coming here,” someone said.

“We are Killingworth,” said EMT James Fretz, who drove the truck.

The confusion was understandable. For the third time in the past two years, the Killingworth Ambulance Association had to borrow a vehicle. And for the third time in two years, it borrowed it from the Clinton Volunteer Fire Department.

The reason: Killingworth’s ambulance was sent to Eastford Fire and Rescue to repair a malfunction with its rear air-bag suspension, and the date of its return was uncertain. In need of a replacement, the KAA turned to a familiar ally for help.

Clinton responded by sending Ambulance No. 942 to Killingworth on Sept. 20. It wasn’t returned until Tuesday … or six weeks later.

“We’re more than happy to help,” said Jason Lewellyn, Clinton’s Deputy Chief of EMS. “Our third (ambulance) is used in the case of extreme emergencies. Our call volume justified our lending it out because it really doesn’t hurt us. More importantly, we have such a good relationship with our neighboring towns. For the residents of Killingworth and our town, being able to respond in your own town is always beneficial.”

That makes sense, especially with the volume of calls the KAA experienced the past year. From October, 2020 through September of this year, it answered 459 – a 21 percent jump from the previous year (379). Then it responded to 49 in October with the Clinton loaner.

“The members of our department always want to help,” said Lewellyn. “We hope that if it were our time of need, we’d be able to reach out to (the KAA). I think of it is as a mutual relationship.”

That’s because it is. Clinton and Killingworth are members of the Valley Shore Mutual Aid Association, each willing to cover for the other if it is unable to assemble a crew for an emergency. But Clinton takes it a step farther: It covers for Killingworth if it’s missing an ambulance — a practice that, according to Killingworth’s Chief of Service Mike Haaga, has been going on since he and John Battista, Llewellyn’s predecessor in Clinton, had a conversation approximately 10 years ago.

Neither is sure when or where it was, but each remembered what was said.

“I told him, ‘We’re having trouble with our ambulance,’ “ Haaga said, “and he said, ‘I’ve got three. I’ll give you one.’ “

So he did. And so Clinton has ever since.

“To be brutally blunt,” said Battista, “we never considered it an inconvenience at all. We considered it all a part of our Mutual Aid agreement. When we had an available automobjle, it made sense to have it in Killingworth, manned by Killingworth people. That’s how the system works. They would do the exact same thing for us.

“It does not seem to be a favor or anything like that to us. It’s just the way it is. I’ve been in the department 50 years, and it’s been like that from Day One. It’s not something we do to draw attention to ourselves. It’s just the way it’s done. It’s who we are. It’s the same way with Killingworth. Killingworth has always been there for us, and it always will be there for us.”

(EDITOR’S NOTE: To access the video, click on the following attachment: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PfOKm575ST8)

When the Killingworth Ambulance Association celebrated its 50^th anniversary Sunday at Deer Lake, it concluded the event with a 15-minute video chronicling the group’s history. Afterward, the committee that produced it was congratulated, the room was cleared and everyone went home.

But wait. We’re not finished. The credits haven’t rolled. We must thank those most responsible.

Without the help of Haddam-Killingworth High School, the video might not – no, would not – have been possible. Which is why the Killingworth Ambulance Association applauds and salutes one HKHS group in particular for its work in assembling a piece of Killingworth history and bringing it to Sunday’s celebration.

Would the members of Kasha Topa-Finberg’s Event Broadcasting class please step forward? Because without them, there would be no documentary.

As it turns out, they were ideal partners. Like the concerned citizens who organized the KAA 50 years ago, they volunteered their services.  And, like the individuals portrayed in the video, they were professional, accountable and successful.

Senior Shelby Welsch and junior Logan DiCicco were the most responsible, each instructed to collaborate with the Ambulance Association on the project. Welsch would film it. DiCicco would edit it. And Ms. Topa-Finberg would oversee it.

“Working on the KAA project was an amazing opportunity for Shelby and Logan,” said Topa-Finberg. “Not only were they able to exercise their communications and technical skills, but they were involved in working with the community. They worked extremely hard on a turnaround project and created a finished, real-world product that made us proud.”

Result? See for yourself. By clicking on the following attachment, you can watch what they produced and understand why their assistance was so invaluable and why the KAA is indebted to them: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PfOKm575ST8