County approves EMS substation at Antietam Fire Company; $113,558 included in FY26 operating budget

The Board of County Commissioners voted unanimously to authorize Community Rescue Service to establish an additional EMS substation at the Antietam Fire Company on Hagerstown’s north end.

David Hayes, the county director of emergency services, and Robert Buck, chief of Community Rescue Service, presented the request and said an evaluation of daily and hourly call loads found a need to station an additional transport unit in northern Hagerstown. Hayes told the board that stationing a unit in the north end reduces the number of county ambulances and EMS units pulled from rural areas into the city and improves local availability.

Hayes said the county has included $113,558 for the substation in the FY26 operating budget. Hayes noted concurrence from the county administrator, the chief financial officer and James Brecker of the Washington County Volunteer Fire and Rescue Association; Brecker’s organization endorsed the establishment of the substation.

Chief Buck said the crew began running an ambulance from that station in October 2022 and that the unit currently responds to about 3,500 calls a year from that location. “We’ve seen an improvement in response times in that immediate area,” Buck said, and the substation has helped reduce strain on primary units serving outlying areas.

The board approved the request 5–0. County staff said the request follows prior procedures used to establish substations and that the funding was included in the FY26 operating budget.