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Ambulance Location Pending

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By MIKE SALINERO

msalinero@tampatrib.com

Published: January 22, 2009

TAMPA - County fire officials are once again recommending that an advanced life-support ambulance be moved full time from a Lutz fire station to the much poorer minority community of Progress Village.
Hillsborough County Fire Rescue will make a report to county commissioners today showing that the Progress Village fire station gets 21/2 times more calls for advanced life-support services than Lutz.
Fire officials wanted to move the ambulance in October, citing a much higher number of ALS calls in Progress Village. The vehicle and crew had been splitting time between the two areas for the previous 11 months.

But after hearing protests from Lutz residents, county commissioners approved $178,000 in overtime to maintain ALS ambulances at both stations until this month. During that period, the fire department was to collect data to see whether a full-time ambulance was needed at the Lutz station.

The study, conducted between Oct. 2 and Jan. 6, showed that Progress Village received 594 calls for advanced life-support service compared with 246 in Lutz. The average number of advanced life-support calls for all department rescue units was 552.

"There's more of a need in the Progress Village area," said David Travis, chief of the department's Rescue Division.

Commissioners balked at moving the ambulance in October after they received reports that a Lutz man died because of a slow response from paramedics. The man suffered a stroke in the daytime while the advanced life-support vehicle and crew were in Progress Village. An ambulance from Pasco County responded to the Lutz call 25 minutes after a 911 call was made.

But the 911 caller had said the stricken man had been hurt falling off a bike. The caller did not mention a stroke, so dispatchers did not send an ALS ambulance.
Commission Chairman Ken Hagan, whose district includes Lutz, said in October that he would like fire rescue to find a way to have both stations staffed with advanced life-support service. Hagan could not be reached for comment Wednesday.
Fire officials estimate that having ALS units at both stations would cost $1.2 million initially and $800,000 in annual personnel costs after that. Plus, the Lutz station has a full-time paramedic and a fire engine sufficient for the number of ALS calls in the area, Travis said.

"To fund an additional rescue unit is expensive," he said. "The department recommendation is to relocate and not fund an additional resource at this time in this budgetary climate."

The commissioners meet at 9 a.m. in the Fred. B. Karl County Center at 601 E. Kennedy Blvd. in Tampa.

Reporter Mike Salinero can be reached at (813) 259-8303.

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