County chooses new ambulance service

By Tony Farkas
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GROVETON — The Trinity County Commissioners Court approved new ambulance service for the county, but not before hearing a plea from the previous service provider.

At it regular meeting on July 25, David Robison, owner of Groveton EMS, the firm the county and the city of Groveton had agreements with for ambulance service, claimed that only one side of the story had been heard, and Groveton EMS was made out to be the worst ambulance in the country.

At a previous meeting, the county sent the firm its notice of intention to end the contract, citing the ambulance service was operating without a license and complaints from patients.

Robison said that he has acknowledged his mistakes, but that in the thousands of interactions he has had with patients you would expect complaints.

“I should be judged by my medical skills, not my diplomacy,” he said. “I will, though, take training on dealing with stressful situations.”

Robison said that it would be a mistake to contract with an out-of-town company, and the county should reconsider using his firm since it is local and non-profit. He offered to provide service for $10,000 per month.

However, County Judge Danny Martin said the issue actually started with the lapsed license; while Robison said it was a simple matter of sending the renewal to the wrong address, County Attorney Colton Hay said that sending it to the wrong address is the same as not sending it in at all.

Commissioner Neal Smith told Robison that he had backed him since he began, but things have gone too far and “you (Robison) caused it.

“I said clean up your act and people will support you, and you didn’t,” Smith said. “People are tired of it and deserve an ambulance service that will get them to a hospital in a crisis.”

The county then discussed contracting with another service, and will take up a contract, with some modifications, with Allegiance Ambulance.

The new service will have an ambulance housed in the Groveton VFD building, but that ambulance is not dedicated to the area and will be used for mutual aid for other Allegiance needs. However, that aid only applies to crises; non-emergency transfers will not be done.

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The cost is estimated to be $78,000 per year, or $6,500 a month, which will be shared with the city of Groveton. The Groveton City Council will take the matter up at its August meeting.

In other business, the county:

•approved a burn ban in the county for 90 days;

•approved the annual audit, which was issued with an unmodified opinion;

•approved a ban of the application TikTok on county phones;

•approved the allocation of Rural Schools Grant funds from the U.S. Forestry Service;

•tabled action on a bill from DRG Architects regarding jail plans;

•approved a contract with IT Enabled for support services;

•approved adding a new county road to branch off Josserand Road; and

•approved the allocation of unclaimed property capital credits.