There was a mad scramble after January 6 to get ambulances to Washington D.C. for the inauguration, and the federal government inked a multi-million dollar deal to make it happen.
FEMA has hired a company called American Medical Response, Inc. to provide emergency services for Wednesday. The value of the contract -- $10 million.
The deal was signed last Friday and runs through next Monday. AMR offers ground and air ambulances as well as EMT-trained personnel.
The inauguration's already off to a scary start ... as we reported, Monday's rehearsal was interrupted by smoke billowing nearby, leading to a lockdown of Capitol Hill.
D.C. is like an armed camp, with more than 20,000 National Guard troops at the ready. Although the feds now say the inauguration should be secure, they're clearly taking no chances. It's unclear how many ambulances are coming to D.C., but for $10 mil it must be a lot.
Fingers cross AMR's services won't be needed.