The  Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue Special Weapons and Tactics Medic Unit (SWAT) was founded in October 2000 and increases the level of protection provided to the citizens, employees and visitors in the City of Fort Lauderdale.

This special operations unit consists of eight fire rescue department paramedics who are assigned to the Fort Lauderdale Police Department SWAT team. The SWAT medics respond to all incidents involving the Fort Lauderdale Police Department SWAT team.

SWAT medics are equipped and trained to provide emergency medical care in a tactical environment where delivery of emergency medical care to injured or sick civilians and police officers is often delayed because medical personnel are usually not equipped to operate under hostile conditions. SWAT medics give the fire-rescue and police departments the ability to rapidly provide life-saving service to sick or injured persons in areas otherwise not accessible to traditional paramedics.

Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue SWAT Medic Unit is directed to:

• Provide a medical response to the sick and injured within the tactical arena in ninety seconds, conditions permitting
• Individualize medical response to SWAT team members by catering to specific medical conditions of individual officers
• Enhance tactical mission accomplishment by assisting in extrication and taking over medical emergency management, thereby freeing up SWAT officers to return to the primary objective
• Facilitate a professional partnership between the police and fire-rescue departments
• Reduce death, injury and illness among SWAT officers, innocents and suspects
• Project a favorable image of both the Police and Fire-Rescue Departments with the citizens of Fort Lauderdale
• Offer a sense of comfort to SWAT officers and their families, knowing that qualified emergency medical assistance is with them at all times during training and missions