Ambulance to Stay in Milford, M-TEMS Decides
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By Jordan Fouts-
M-TEMS board member Scott Sigerfoos presented the plan at the directors meeting Wednesday, attended by Milford council member Doug Ruch and Jefferson Township Trustee Beth Krull. Sigerfoos said that after some discussion among directors, they felt comfortable keeping an ambulance at the Milford fire hall for at least eight hours a day.
It’s also a possibility that the ambulance remain stationed in the town 24-7 and continue to serve Milford and Van Buren and Jefferson townships, Sigerfoos added.
“I’m leaning toward a higher than 50 percent chance,” he told Ruch and Krull. “My gut feeling is that there’s a greater chance to continue as-is, than to have to cut down to eight hours.”
That’s a change from the directors’ position in July, when they informed Milford that, due to budget reasons, M-TEMS could no longer keep an ambulance there. Sigerfoos said they are now expecting stronger finances after collecting more than the billing company projected in the past five weeks.
“We felt that even if finances continue to go down, we should still be able to keep something there at least eight hours a day,” he said. “But finances are not falling as sharply as we thought.”
Previously, he said they were collecting less than projected, leading to gloomier forecasts and reconsideration of their service structure. They had intended to serve Milford and the two townships from Leesburg, meaning a two-minute longer response time – still among the fastest in the county, they said at last month’s meeting.
The eight-hour contract directors offered is in addition to 24-hour coverage throughout the service, and with no additional cost to the three municipalities. The three pay M-TEMS a total of $57,000, with an additional $12,000 cost to Milford for maintaining the fire hall.
Directors asked that Milford agree to make four improvements to the fire hall: fix the ventilation system for health reasons, install a window for fresh air and light, fix a sewage issue and install a proper door between the station and garage.
Ventilation and sewage were the bigger issues. Sigerfoos said squad members have gotten sick after going to the fire hall, and have had problems with sewage backing up in the shower and the vehicle bay flooding.
Ruch and Krull promised to relay an answer to directors after consulting with their own boards in the next few weeks.[[In-content Ad]]
M-TEMS board member Scott Sigerfoos presented the plan at the directors meeting Wednesday, attended by Milford council member Doug Ruch and Jefferson Township Trustee Beth Krull. Sigerfoos said that after some discussion among directors, they felt comfortable keeping an ambulance at the Milford fire hall for at least eight hours a day.
It’s also a possibility that the ambulance remain stationed in the town 24-7 and continue to serve Milford and Van Buren and Jefferson townships, Sigerfoos added.
“I’m leaning toward a higher than 50 percent chance,” he told Ruch and Krull. “My gut feeling is that there’s a greater chance to continue as-is, than to have to cut down to eight hours.”
That’s a change from the directors’ position in July, when they informed Milford that, due to budget reasons, M-TEMS could no longer keep an ambulance there. Sigerfoos said they are now expecting stronger finances after collecting more than the billing company projected in the past five weeks.
“We felt that even if finances continue to go down, we should still be able to keep something there at least eight hours a day,” he said. “But finances are not falling as sharply as we thought.”
Previously, he said they were collecting less than projected, leading to gloomier forecasts and reconsideration of their service structure. They had intended to serve Milford and the two townships from Leesburg, meaning a two-minute longer response time – still among the fastest in the county, they said at last month’s meeting.
The eight-hour contract directors offered is in addition to 24-hour coverage throughout the service, and with no additional cost to the three municipalities. The three pay M-TEMS a total of $57,000, with an additional $12,000 cost to Milford for maintaining the fire hall.
Directors asked that Milford agree to make four improvements to the fire hall: fix the ventilation system for health reasons, install a window for fresh air and light, fix a sewage issue and install a proper door between the station and garage.
Ventilation and sewage were the bigger issues. Sigerfoos said squad members have gotten sick after going to the fire hall, and have had problems with sewage backing up in the shower and the vehicle bay flooding.
Ruch and Krull promised to relay an answer to directors after consulting with their own boards in the next few weeks.[[In-content Ad]]
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