Photo by Jason Benavides
March 21. By Dave Vieser. At their March 20 meeting, the Cornelius Town Board formalized the town’s position on several issues involving the County Medic System. Following the lead of the Davidson Town Board, the commissioners unanimously approved a resolution addressing changes regarding dispatch procedures and a new response protocol for Medic EMS calls within the town.
Changes in dispatching
The Cornelius Town Board supported the position of the Cornelius/Lemley Fire Dept. requesting that information on calls for medical assistance/EMS be transmitted to firefighters immediately. The fire department units are frequently first at the scene, but under current conditions, there can be a several-minute delay in getting the precise information and location to firefighters.
The resolution states, in part, that “the Cornelius-Lemley Fire Rescue be provided with all the call data for the calls originating in Cornelius simultaneously when MEDIC receives the data so that Cornelius-Lemley Fire Rescue has the same information that MEDIC does and to ensure that fire department personnel have the needed information to change the response priority if warranted.”
Lights and sirens
The commissioners also have concerns about Medic recommendations that lights and sirens not be used on lower priority EMS calls. The resolution raises those concerns while noting that “MEDIC can implement this change without the approval of the Town of Cornelius.”
Response protocol
The Town Board, as well as the fire department, also have concerns that EMS calls in Cornelius will not all have a Cornelius-Lemley Fire Rescue response under the new protocol
“We request that Cornelius-Lemley Fire Rescue be dispatched to all EMS calls for service in Cornelius’s jurisdiction as determined per the current protocol,” states the resolution.
When could MEDIC changes be implemented?
The protocol revisions were originally scheduled for March. However, Medic is currently conducting a series of public information meetings throughout the county. The next such meeting in our area is scheduled for Wednesday April 5, 6:30 pm, at the Northern Regional Recreation Center on Highway 115 in Cornelius.
In other action, the board:
—Honored John DeKamper, Assistant Director Of Parks, who will be retiring at the end of the month. He has worked for the town since 2008.
—Approved the acquisition of 4.8 acres to enable the construction of a new power sub station for ElectriCities, which provides power to the east side of the town. The property, primarily vacant, is currently owned by CBD of Charlotte LLC and is located east of Hwy. 115 and the Norfolk Southern Rail Line, a short distance north of Bailey Road. The negotiated purchase price is $238,777. ElectriCities expects the construction to take approximately two years.
—Adopted new regulations for town advisory boards in order to gain uniformity. Among the changes adopted were that all boards have three-year staggered terms, and that a two full term limit will apply for all appointees, except to the Architectural Review Board.
