By Chris Cato
WSPA-TV 7
WILLIAMSTON, SC — Rescue Squads in Anderson County can now be fined for answering emergency calls outside their service areas. The director of the county’s Emergency Medical Services division says the move is meant to discourage ambulance providers and citizens from circumventing 911.
“The 911 system is in place for a reason,” says Scott Stoller, director of EMS & Special Operations. “When a citizen calls 911 with an emergency, dispatchers are going to send the closest available unit. But that’s not possible when that unit is responding to a personal call from someone that lives in another town. So then we’d have to send a back-up unit. And that could delay treatment for the heart attack or whatever the condition of the emergency.”
He says the county has seen a problem recently with citizens calling certain rescue squads for “personal emergencies” because of relationships with someone who works for the squad — even if the squad serves another jurisdiction. Chief Joe Barr of the Williamston Rescue Squad says the problem has been particularly noticeable in his area. According to a study conducted by Barr at the request of Stoller, between November 2010 and October 2011, Pelzer Rescue Squad responded to 351 calls in Williamston’s service area. Williamston went into Pelzer 71 times.
Full Story: EMS Squads Could Face Fines For Crossing Lines