Ambulance calls unchanged

By MICHAEL MARESH

Staff writer

Calls for county ambulances in 2025 were similar to those in the previous two years. In 2023, the county received 1,216 calls for service. In 2024, 1,360 calls were logged, EMS director Mickey Price said. Last year the total was 1,290.

The county ambulance has been understaffed for a while. More of its workers live elsewhere and look for opportunities closer to home with better pay, Price said.

“We are in the process of hiring four new full-time employees and four part-time employees, which will fix the staffing issues,” Price said.

For months, county commissioners talked about a parcel of land in Peabody that some thought would be ideal for a new road and ridge station before commissioners placed it on hold.

Building a shell for the Peabody station with no electricity would have cost between $300,000 and $400,000, but the county decided to delay action. Eventually a full-time ambulance station also was envisioned for the building.

“Having a full-time station in Peabody is still our goal,” Price said. “Staffing is always an issue in smaller counties, but I believe that, yes, we will be able to staff it.”

The county has two full-time ambulances with three shifts and an ambulance staffed by part-timers in Tampa.