LA County Lifeguards to Use Fleet of 45 Customized Escape Hybrids

24 May 2008

The Los Angeles County Lifeguards (LACL), a division of the Los Angeles County Fire Department, is getting a fleet of 45 Escape Hybrids with Intelligent four-wheel-drive specially equipped for use on rescue patrol.

The LACL Escape Hybrid.

The Intelligent four-wheel-drive version of the Escape Hybrid offers fuel economy of 29 mpg city and 27 mpg highway.

A Ford design team inspected the pickup trucks currently in use and found various makeshift storage areas for critical equipment. The Ford designers decided to remove 60% of the Escape’s rear seat on the driver’s side and replace it with a rescue equipment storage unit—an aluminum box with specially designated spaces for important emergency equipment, such as defibrillators, trauma boxes and oxygen tanks. The remaining 40% of the seat was left intact in case the lifeguards had to transport someone, such as a lost child.

The designers also pulled out the center console and replaced it with a radio rack to keep all the communications equipment organized. Ford designers also outfitted the Escape Hybrids with a custom-fit roof rack for the lifeguards’ paddle board and spine board, and easy-to-clean rubber floor mats and cargo liners.