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Dispute over Union Rescue contract and Pender EMS arrangement raises service and timing questions
Summary
Union Rescue officials and the county exchanged conflicting representations about a contract and station staffing. Union Rescue Chief Diane Giddens said she was told service would change and that Union could be removed from Pender EMS subcontracting; commissioners pressed staff for clarity and options for continuity of paramedic-level service.
A July 28 special meeting of the Pender County Board of Commissioners included extended public comment and commissioner discussion about emergency medical services after Union Rescue Squad representatives said they received notice that Pender EMS planned to end Union’s subcontracting relationship.
Union Rescue Chief Diane Giddens told the board she learned informally that Pender EMS planned to remove Union Rescue from its subcontract and that Union would be asked to vacate a station assigned to them as soon as the following morning. Giddens said she had been told a “quick response vehicle” (QRV) or transport unit would be placed at Penderlea Fire Department and that Union Rescue would continue to respond with a basic (non-transport) unit while a contract with the county was finalized; she said she had not received a copy of the termination letter that others had referenced.
“Without a contract, we cannot” move an ambulance or continue transport service, Giddens told the board. She said she had spoken with Pender EMS leadership about…
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