As the snow fell in big soft clumps outside the Newton fire station Monday, Jorge Martin Vera found himself in a different world.
Back home in Encarnacion, Paraguay, it is 105 degree and his comrades in the fire service are battling drought and fierce wildfires.
Martin Vera is part of a Kansas Paraguay Partners exchange program with the United States.
He was in Newton Monday visiting with personnel from the Newton Fire/EMS Department.
He toured their training facilities and firehouses and went on calls with his Newton counterparts.
Martin Vera was delighted to experience snow for the first time, but he noted there are many other difference between the United States and his home country, especially when it comes to emergency services.
U.S. residents take for granted that when they call 911, there will be an operator on the other end or that when they need an ambulance or a fire truck, crews will be there in minutes.
But not so for the people of Paraguay, said Captain Major Martin Vera.
Martin Vera said in Paraguay, all of the emergency and fire personnel are volunteers.
There are four fire stations in the his home city of Encarnacion, which has a population of 150,000. Newton, with a population of less than 20,000, and soon is to have three stations.
Equipment also is limited, Martin Vera said. The country of Paraguay has one cervical collar, which is a piece of standard equipment in the United States.
The Newton department donated equipment to Martin Vera’s department, including firefighting boots, pants and jackets as a part of this exchange.
The country of Paraguay, which has a population of 5 million, has one central 911 center. That center has 11 phone lines and three operators.
Martin Vera said the lines often get jammed — sometimes with prank callers.
There is no fire or ambulance service in Paraguay in rural areas. Crews and equipment have to come from the cities, which means response times can vary drastically — anywhere from minutes to five hours, Martin Vera said.
He said there also are cultural differences that make emergency crews work more difficult in Paraguay.
“The signs — they ignore them and keep walking,” Martin Vera said through an interpreter. “Here, the traffic pulls over to the side when the emergency vehicles pass. In Paraguay, they do not.”
Despite differences, both Martin Vera and members of the Newton department said they benefited from the exchange.
Martin Vera said he is learning about the systems U.S. fire/EMS departments use.
Newton Fire/EMS Battalion Chief Scott Metzler said he has been impressed with the Paraguayan emergency crews.
“We have been fortunate to learn from the commonalties with our job challenges,” he said. “For me, I have learned how other emergency departments deal with the same problems with less equipment and technology.”
