Jefferson County debates EMS-fire consolidation

A debate’s still going on whether the Jefferson County EMS and fire districts should consolidate. There were two main arguments voiced at a public meeting Thursday evening.

Supporters of consolidating the two agencies say it’ll streamline the process of responding to emergencies like a fire, when an ambulance might show up first and would have to wait five minutes before a fire truck showed up.

If the districts were to merge, the first responder medics also would be trained in firefighting and would be able to come with the fire truck. But skeptics of the merger are not sure it would be worth the public funding to train members of each agency.

Supporters, though, think regardless that a consolidation is long overdue.

“Unlike all the other communities in Central Oregon, we are the only city that has a separate ambulance and fire district,” volunteer firefighter and former Madras Mayor Rick Allen said. “Both do a great job providing service, yet at the same time, they struggle for enough staff, for enough volunteers.”

The city has sent a data request to find out more about how exactly a consolidation would look — both financially and in regard to response time. Madras City Councilor Bartt Brick is wary of the merger and wants to see more data to back whatever decision is made.

“If that information leads us to the conclusion to consolidate two organizations into one, I would be all for it,” Brick said. “If, on the other hand, it led us to a different conclusion, I would be fine with that.”

He went on to say the goal is a more efficient and effective use of public safety dollars.

The city is expecting to get the study back in about two months, and when it does, Brick said the council will get more feedback from the public over the summer and hopefully make a final decision by fall.