Dec. 23—Kecksburg Rescue Ambulance Service is set to answer its final call.
The volunteer-based ambulance service, believed to be the last of its kind in Westmoreland County, will cease operations in Mt. Pleasant Township. Its last day in service will be Dec. 31.
Longtime chief Maureen Hutter said it has been a struggle in recent years to get enough certified volunteers to fill ambulance crews. Hutter, who has been chief since 1998, said just she and a couple others handle the bulk of the responses.
“We have money in the bank; it’s not a money situation. … It’s the personnel,” she said.
The service founded in 1970 was activated for 348 calls for the year as of Nov. 30 in a rural section of the township, Hutter said. On Jan. 1, its service area will be split by Mutual Aid, which has a station in nearby Norvelt, and Medic 10 in Mt. Pleasant. Those two agencies already work with Kecksburg ambulance.
After the service’s response rate fell below 50% this year, Hutter said, officials started taking steps to shut down. The volunteers who are responding to calls — two are required for a crew — now have been doing so for decades, but they’re aging and younger members have not stepped in.
“I’ve put so much time in going on and keeping this place running,” she said. “To see it close down, it’s sad but it’s inevitable.”
Township Supervisor Duane Hutter said ambulance officials notified them in September of the impending closure. They’ve been working with the service to make sure there’s a smooth transition.
“This has been going on,” he said.
He and Maureen Hutter are married.
Mutual Aid and Medic 10 are working with the volunteer service to honor residents’ subscriptions, Maureen Hutter said. The service has made the appropriate notifications of its intent to shut down and taped a notice detailing the closure to the front door of the station.
A volunteer returned to the station in an ambulance Monday morning after responding to a call and backed into the garage. The station is home to two ambulances and a squad truck, along with other equipment. Maureen Hutter said the vehicles and equipment will be sold or given to other EMS agencies sometime next year, depending on how the service acquired it.
Service crisis
The volunteer issues are in contrast to financial difficulties other ambulance services in the region have cited in closing in recent years and months. Ambulance services across the state have said they are in crisis because of inconsistent funding from local, state and federal sources, along with paltry insurance reimbursements of between 30% to 60% for calls. Low pay and rigorous training credentials also have hindered recruitment.
Saltsburg-based Lifestat EMS abruptly shut down Dec. 7, and officials cited “ongoing financial challenges, largely driven by inadequate reimbursements from insurance carriers” in a statement. The closure came after 36 years in operation.
Murrysville Medic One, Mutual Aid and Citizens Ambulance Service in Indiana County are temporarily handling calls in Lifestat’s area.
Officials in East Deer, Brackenridge, Harrison and Tarentum are considering creating an emergency medical services authority that would bill member communities for ambulance service. Eureka Community Ambulance Service in Tarentum and Citizens EMS in Harrison have been in talks to consolidate. Both companies are 88 years old.
Renatta Signorini is a TribLive reporter covering breaking news, crime, courts and Jeannette. She has been working at the Trib since 2005. She can be reached at [email protected].
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