Sioux City’s Fire Rescue will begin handling the city’s 9-1-1 ambulance calls beginning January 1st of next year.
The current provider, Siouxland Paramedics, cited financial difficulties last month when they told the city they would stop providing the services to the city and North Sioux City by the end of the year.
Fire Rescue Chief Tom Everett has established a plan to have a civilian paramedic/ambulance division, employing 27 new full-time equivalent employees, take over those duties:
OC….fairly similar. :22
Everett’s plan has three fire stations staging ambulances during the daytime hours to give four to eight minute response times:
OC……….downtown here. ;18
Stations 3 and 4 would run ambulances at night.
The City Council voted 3-1 to accept the proposal with Mayor Bob Scott saying the city should have been given more time to prepare a plan for the changes:
OC……..bother taxpayers. ;23
The city will not provide non-emergency transfers of patients or provide services to other communities.
