Slang for Ambulance (Bus, Bumbolance, Bambulance)

Bapopik at AOL.COM Bapopik at AOL.COM
Sat Jun 18 18:51:07 UTC 2005 

Is "bus" the NYC slang for "ambulance"? HDAS has a Dos Passos citation, but
not even a full entry, with no regional information.
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Do they say "bumbolance" in Tennessee?
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"Bambulance" seems to have a lot of hits. It's not in HDAS.
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The following thread was interesting. Any help on the NYC "bus" will be
appreciated.
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    Steve &  Susan Dec 22 2002,  3:10 pm
    Newsgroups: misc.emerg-services  From: Steve & Susan
<moc.enilepip at ykkams>   Date: Sun, 22 Dec 2002 14:10:16 -0600  Local: Sun,Dec  22 2002 3:10 pm
Subject: Re: Slang for Ambulance

'Blance,
'Bamblance
(used in Jersey  City, NJ along with "bus")
"Bus" is a New York City expression and has been so for many years.
It's  not a TV invention. Say it to any cop, firefighter or EMS worker
in NYC and  they'll know exactly what you mean.
In Missouri, ALS ambulances can be referred to as "LSV's" or life
support  vehicles.
My old FD (for a brief time as an inside joke) referred to ambulances
as  "meat cars." (A firefighter with a speech impediment was really
saying  "police car" and the patient heard "meat car.").
Steve
(forever on the bus)
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    Aussie  Medic Dec 22 2002,  5:09 pm
    Newsgroups: misc.emerg-services  From: "Aussie Medic"
<aussie_me... at hotmail.com> -     Date: Sun, 22 Dec 2002 22:09:36 GMT  Local: Sun,Dec  22 2002
5:09 pm   Subject: Re: Slang for Ambulance

forgot "Big White Taxi" (see BRT for FF's)  for the number of people who
treat us as a taxi service.....
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         John  Noble Dec 22  2002, 6:21 pm
   Newsgroups: misc.emerg-services  From: "John Noble"
<bizzdevs... at spampacbell.net>  -  Date: Sun, 22 Dec 2002 23:20:14 GMT  Local:  Sun,Dec  22 2002 6:20
pm   Subject: Re: Slang for Ambulance

I think in Los Angeles they call them  "RA" for Rescue Ambulance.
(Pardon if mentioned earlier, but I can't  see prior posts)
"Aussie Medic"  <aussie_me... at hotmail.com> wrote in message




(http://groups-beta.google.com/group/misc.emerg-services/browse_thread/thread/149b39f118eb1c69/227d04123badcd63?hide_quotes=no#msg_2af6985216dde177)

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         Steve &  Susan Dec 23  2002, 12:36 am
   Newsgroups: misc.emerg-services  From: Steve & Susan <moc.enilepip at ykkams>
  Date: Sun, 22 Dec 2002 23:36:06 -0600  Local:  Mon,Dec  23 2002 12:36 am
Subject: Re: Slang for Ambulance

On Sun, 22 Dec 2002  23:27:37 -0500, Buff5200 <BUFF5... at aol.com> wrote:
>Red Ball  Express


Reminded me of a few more...
Tac-Z (sounds like Taxi - for Tactical paramedic unit "10  Zebra"  old
NYC*EMS Manhattan Boro Cmd,)
Orange & White Bus Company
Steve

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    Leigh Darnall Dec 23 2002,  8:53 am
    Newsgroups: misc.emerg-services  From: Leigh Darnall
_l... at spammersuck.net_ (mailto:l... at spammersuck.net)   Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2002 07:54:08 -0600
Local: Mon,Dec  23 2002 8:54 am   Subject: Re: Slang for Ambulance

Tennessee slang:
Med unit, unit, truck, rig or box. The last is used in a fairly
desperate  plea  - "Get me off the box NOW. I can't take it anymore" type
stuff.
"Bus" must be a Yankee thing- I'd never heard it until Third Watch
happened to TV.
Oh, yeah, and "bumbolance." A bit of nonsense that drives my partner crazy.
--
Leigh Darnall
Itinerant Paramedic
Firefighter Wannabe
As  wrong as a soup sandwich.
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    BCarney1123 Dec 23 2002,  11:21 pm
    Newsgroups: misc.emerg-services  From: bcarney1... at aol.com (BCarney1123)
 Date: 24 Dec 2002 04:20:49 GMT  Local: Mon,Dec  23 2002 11:20 pm   Subject:
Re: Slang for Ambulance

>"Bus" must be a Yankee  thing- I'd never heard it until Third Watch
>happened to TV.


More like a NYC area thing. Around here if you say bus everyone  knows
your're
talking about the ambulance. There are two stories I've heard  for this term.
The most obvious one is the reference to picking up multiple people. Back in
the days before the letters E-M-S meant anything it was not unheard of to be
so
busy that the "buses" would respond incident to incident picking up  people
on
the way to the hospital.
Another reference is to the contract NYC had several years ago with the
Grumann
Corporation. Grumann was awarded a large contract to provide the  City with
Transit buses. Grumann also used to make ambulances and NYC EMS  also used
Grumann ambulances. Hence the "Bus" reference. We had two here in  New
Brunswick
and they wouldn't die.
I'm sure some of our collegues from NYC could set the record straight if I'm
mistaken.
Brian
New Brunswick, NJ
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    GaryS Dec 24 2002,  12:26 am
    Newsgroups: misc.emerg-services  From: G... at ILUVspam.com   Date: Tue, 24
Dec 2002 05:26:44 GMT  Local: Tues,Dec  24 2002 12:26 am   Subject: Re: Slang
for Ambulance

On 24 Dec 2002 04:20:49 GMT,  bcarney1... at aol.com (BCarney1123) wrote:

> Another reference is to the contract NYC had several years ago with the
Grumann
> Corporation. Grumann was awarded a large contract to provide  the City with
> Transit buses. Grumann also used to make ambulances and  NYC EMS also used
> Grumann ambulances. Hence the "Bus" reference. We had  two here in New
Brunswick
> and they wouldn't die.


That's the story that I've heard a number of times from people  from NYC, so
there might be some truth to it. However, Bob's story would seem to
contradict that since it predates NYC's purchase of the
Grumman ambulances  by several years.
As for the durability, during WW II Navy pilots referred to the company as
the "Grumman Iron Works" because the planes were so rugged and would keep
flying  with incredible damage.
Gary
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         danny  burstein Dec 25  2002, 2:22 pm
   Newsgroups: misc.emerg-services  From: danny burstein <dan... at panix.com>
Date: Wed, 25 Dec 2002 19:22:48 +0000 (UTC)  Local:  Wed,Dec  25 2002 2:22 pm
  Subject: Re: Slang for Ambulance

In  <HtnO9.78591$hK4.6435... at bgtns­c05-news.ops.worldnet.att.net>  "John
Filangeri" <JohnFilang... at worldnet.att.ne­t> writes:
>It's not from the  Grummans. The term predates them by several decades at
>least. And,  the Grummans were truck chassis modulars (type I). Nothing like
>a  bus.  I would imagine it came from the old "bread truck" (similar to
>trucks used to deliver fresh bread every morning to local  groceries)
>ambulances. They looked quite a bit like a sawed-off  bus.


I have been told by some of the fossilized dinosaurs in  NYC's EMS group
(you know, the folk who were around back when "DIT"  was a checkoff box on
the ambulance call reports) that the term (which  predated my arrival in
the system) comes from the old Dep't of  Hospital days.
Way back then a significant amount of patient transport was done by
multi-passenger vehicles, kind of like the access-a-ride units now in  use
for the handicapped. So yes, patients would wait for the (medical)  "bus"
as it made its rounds.
danny " however, these same people have told me about the snipe hunts  and
treating injuries from cow tipping and recovering bodies after  seregators
got to them, so I'm not sure how much to trust them "  burstein

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