ARLEY, Ala. (WIAT) — On Sunday, the Winston County Rescue Squad is opening a new ambulance service to cover the eastern side of the county.

Winston County Rescue Chief Cody Wakefield said it will drop response times from 25 to 30 minutes down to more like 13 minutes in this area.

“This area of the county is a very rural area of the county,” Wakefield said. “We were able to operate where private ambulance service was not. The call volume is just not there for a private ambulance service. They just can’t cover that and make enough revenue to pay their bills.”

Winston County Rescue is a 501c3 nonprofit formed by four fire departments serving Arley, Addison, Helicon and Central that relies heavily on donations to operate.

The new service will operate out of the Arley Fire Department headquarters at 236 County Road 77. Sunday’s dedication ceremony will be held there at 1 p.m. for tours of the facility and a meal.

“There’s a tradition among fire and EMS when a truck goes into service you push it into the station,” Wakefield said. “If people make it out tomorrow, they’ll get to push Medic 1 back into the station, put it officially into service.”

There will be a 24/7 paramedic truck and a backup on call truck in case the main one is on a call and additional services are required in the area.

“It’s been a long, long time that this is needed,” Wakefield said. “I’m excited to see it finally come through.”