City Votes to Support Rescue 33 in Reinstatement Efforts

Rescue 33 is getting a chance to prove itself. The Chillicothe based ambulance service has been on permanent suspension since August for a number of problems, like delays in response time and not following protocol. But a vote Monday night from Chillicothe City Council is giving the squad support. The was not a yes or no vote, it was a vote to allow Rescue 33 to negotiate with Peoria Area EMS, proving they can do the job. The Medical Director of PAEMS sent a letter to the city of Chillicothe last week. She wanted to hear from city council before they looked further into accepting the new business plan and possibly reinstating Rescue 33's license.  Rescue 33 has gained 2,000 petitions of support and submitted a 5 year improvement plan. They also chose a brand new Board of Directors including brand new members to help solve the problem.

President of Rescue 33 Ron Hedden "It's a old system, the new system you think of 5,6,7 member board that's what we created is a 5 member board so now if I don't do my job this new kid Martin doesn't do his job, the EMS system only has to deal with the 5 person board."

Mayor of Chillicothe Troy Childers says "Ya know it's been pretty valuable for people to know that they're here, they know where the streets are at. They know things. But then too it's pretty valuable to know that AMT has credentials that really outdo what Rescue 33 has now. Not saying that they can't have 'em, but right now they don't have 'em."

Both Childers and Hedden say the decision on EMS could take months. Some also want parademic says the first step is getting a license as basic squad. No meeting is set with PAEMS.If the license is approved, ultimately the city will vote to bring Rescue 33 back.