Two Central Jersey communities mourn EMT's death

Members of the North Stelton Volunteer Fire Company and Spotswood Emergency Medical Service are mourning the loss of Hinal Patel who died in a collision during her final shift before starting grad school.

The North Stelton Volunteer Fire Company mourns the loss of Hinal Patel (North Stelton Volunteer Fire Company)

Patel will be laid to rest on Monday with visitation and a funeral service scheduled for Monday at the Crabiel Home for Funerals in Milltown and burial at Franklin Memorial Park in North Brunswick

"The members of the North Stelton Volunteer Fire Company are devastated by her loss and extend our deepest condolences to her family, friends and coworkers," reads a message on the Company's Facebook page about the 22-year-old who graduated from Rutgers in May with a Bachelor’s degree in Cell Biology and Neuroscience.

Bianca Patel, told NJ.com she was Hinal's best friend and that Saturday was "supposed to be her last day on call."

She was riding along on a mutual aid call for Spotswood EMS on Saturday morning when a vehicle struck her ambulance on Ryders Lane in East Brunswick, flipping it onto its side. Driver Mark Seube, 24, was hospitalized for non-life threatening injuries.

An accident on Ryders Lane at Cranbury Road in East Brunswick (Jordan Rullo @jordan_rullo via Twitter)

"Today we lost a member of our family. Our hearts are heavy. Thank you Hinal for the compassion you showed on the job. You were a true professional. You will be truly missed," read a message on the Spotswood EMS Faceboo page "I speak for everyone at the Spotswood EMS family in thanking everyone for their support during this very tough day." EMS Director Miriam Barbarise remembered her as being inquisitive, kind, caring and compassionate. "She loved anybody and everybody," Barbarise told CBS New York.

Patel's brother Neel said Hinal did EMS work because she enjoyed it, not just to pad her resume. "She's the one constant in my life. She's always been there," he told NJ.com.

Patel was a Piscataway resident and graduated from Piscataway High School. She joined the North Stelton company in 2012. She had also been a volunteer at St. Peters University Hospital in New Brunswick