Keeping with a commitment to public safety, Anne Arundel County Executive Steve Schuh has announced a pilot program for Emergency Medical Services (EMS) substations on the Mayo Peninsula and in the Heritage Harbour community.
“We are committed to ensuring effective emergency response times for every citizen of this County,” said Schuh. “The first, this new, innovative Mayo EMS substation will ensure our first responders can arrive on the scene within minutes of a call from any of the communities on the peninsula.”
The facility is located at 551 Pure Water Way in Mayo. The Mayo Peninsula was selected due to the challenges presented by responses to the numerous peninsulas in the county.
The project is being funded with current resources in the FY 2018 budget. The substation will operate out of an Anne Arundel County Department of Public Works building that has offices and a three-bay garage. The Fire Department will be converting the conference room to house the crew, and the ambulance will be in one of the garage bays. The local volunteer fire company will also have the ability to respond from the location.
The second test site involves an agreement between the Fire Department and the Heritage Harbour Community Association. It will position a basic life support ambulance in that community on weekdays. The Board of Directors has supported a proposal to place an ambulance at the Heritage Harbour Lodge beginning after May 1st. The crew will utilize available space on the lower level of the building Monday-Friday between the hours of 7:30 a.m. and 3:00 p.m.
“I thank the Heritage Harbour Board of Directors for allowing us to test this program in their community and sharing space in their facility,” said Fire Chief Allan Graves. “This is an important partnership in a program to test the viability of EMS substations in growing communities.”
The Heritage Harbour community was selected due to their volume of emergency medical calls. The goal of the program is a reductionin response times. It will utilize existing resources and and be evaluated six months after implementation. This is planned as a portion of a program to test the viability of EMS substations in growing communities.
