Honolulu has opened a new ambulance station in Kaimuki, good news for people in a busy part of Oahu who were waiting longer for help.

• The station runs around the clock with paramedics, EMTs, and a new ambulance, and backs up Waikiki and East Oahu.
• Demand is already heavy — more than 200 calls in its first week open.
• Instead of building at the nearby fire station, which would have cost over $10 million and taken years, the city rented office space and parks the ambulance in nearby lots.
• Staffing is finally improving after pay raises and a new training class, with the department expecting fewer than 10 open jobs by January out of about 310 — the lowest in 30 years.

Outlook: Another new unit is set to open in West Oahu next week, making it the 25th on the island.