On Friday August 21st, the District 3 Board unanimously voted to terminate the ambulance services. Moving forward the former ambulance service area will be divided between Chiloquin, District 1, and Basin Ambulance. This regrettably will increase the wait time for some portions of the former service area.
Klamath County Fire District 3 will continue to provide fire protection and support our partner ambulances as first responders to medical calls to our district area.
We are grateful to the ambulance staff who responded 24/7 to aid our community members.
This decision was not reached lightly or spur of the moment, and we recognize the hardship it will cause. Staff and board members explored extensive options to maintain service, as insurance billing does not cover the basic costs of running and maintaining the ambulance.
A long term solution for eastern Klamath County has remained elusive, as D3 is the latest of many agencies over the last several decades who have been unable to sustain ambulance service despite their best efforts. This is congruent with many other similar ambulance services in rural Oregon, and other states, who are struggling to keep ambulances running.
We are grateful for the amazing support of our community members and look forward to serving our district for years to come.
This is a press release from the Klamath County Fire District #3
