April 9th, 2025Ambulance museum open day

The state’s Ambulance Victoria Museum opened its doors on Sunday, giving visitors a unique opportunity to explore the history of Victoria’s ambulance service and how emergency care has evolved.

On show at the Bayswater-based museum were the volunteer-run museum’s extensive collection of vintage ambulances, medical equipment, uniforms, communications technology and more.

Ambulance Victoria Chas Martin OAM Museum Curator Ralph Casey said the historical vehicles are always a drawcard.

“We have 30 ambulance vehicles in our collection, including ambulances used as far back as 1887,” Ralph said.

“The collection also includes ambulance motorbikes, the first Mobile Intensive Care Ambulance vehicle and even a mass casualty bus which could have transported up to 12 patients on stretchers and six seated patients.

“At the open day, visitors are welcome to sit in the ambulances, take photos, touch the uniforms and equipment, and meld into what it was like back in the day.”

The museum was the brainchild of a group of retired ambulance officers who formed the Ambulance Historical Society of Victoria in 1986 and began acquiring and restoring vintage ambulances, starting out with just six vehicles.

Currently, the museum is open between 10am and 2pm on Mondays and by appointment-only on other days, so Sunday’s open day was an opportunity for more Victorians to see the collection on display.

Story based on an AV media release. Image: Supplied