Saving money comes before saving lives.
Madisonville Fire Department no longer runs on vehicle accidents with injuries. Sorry guys… not my call. If you don’t like it, write a letter to the editor, your council person, or the mayor.
City Places Restrictions on Fire Department Response
HOPKINS COUNTY, KY—As of the beginning of this week, June 1st, the City of Madisonville and Mayor David Jackson have announced that the Madisonville Fire Department will no longer be among the first responders at the scene of a vehicular accident with injuries.
“In an effort to make our operations more efficient, we changed the response requirements for 10-46s, which are accidents with injuries,” said Mayor Jackson. “Instead of an immediate response by all of the fire department, and all the big trucks rolling out every time there’s any kind of vehicle accident, we wait until we have a police officer or first responder on-site. He or she will immediately assess the situation, and if there’s a potentially hazardous spill, if someone’s trapped, or if there’s any need for the fire department, they will immediately contact the fire department. It’s now at the discretion of the first responder; they will make the call as to whether or not the fire department needs to be dispatched.”
In regard to why the change was made and what benefits he believes the city will see as a result, Mayor Jackson said, “We hope this helps to conserve resources. With the price of fuel continuing to go up, we are trying to reduce fuel costs, and we also hope to lower the cost of fixing wear and tear on the fire department’s high cost trucks. This will also help to increase the safety of the general public by reducing the amount of trucks going through intersections for every vehicle accident. We just think it’s a much better use of our resources.”
Though the alteration to citywide 10-46 response requirements did not require approval from the Madisonville City Council, Mayor Jackson did explain that he presented the idea to each of the council members. After receiving their support, Mayor Jackson and the City of Madisonville put the change into effect on June 1st.
At this time, Chief Steven K. Stoltz and other members of the Madisonville Fire Department have not released any official comments on the amendment.
If you would like to submit your opinion on this matter for publication in a later article, please email iSurf News at luke@isurfnews.com or at news@isurfnews.com.