Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

Local government entities are discussing the possibility of a countywide ambulance service, but the process could take months to come to fruition.

Luverne City Councilman Elliott Jones was contacted to elaborate on the topic.

Jones said it would be called Crenshaw EMS and that the potential owners spoke at a recent Luverne City Council meeting. 

Currently, the city of Luverne and the town of Brantley have ambulance services in the county, but they are what is called paid-on-call services during nights and weekends.

Jones said that this project was initially looked into due to local medical facilities and citizens who felt the current programs were not providing adequate coverage. Also, that night time and weekend response times were an ongoing issue.

Additionally, the new company would like to provide 24 hours a day, seven days a week services to the citizens.

Jones said the idea is to provide hubs in the north, central and south portions of the county.

Jones said the project is in the beginning stages and would be a multi-agency project.

He said that the process could take several months with many meetings among stakeholders to see if the move is in the local community’s best interest.

Jones stated that in the end, what matters is the safety and well-being of the citizens. “As an elected official, I know that sometimes we have to put ourselves in uncomfortable situations to represent those who trusted us to do what is in their best interest. I plan on continuing to do my job and will always face issues head-on,” he said.