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'They have no backup plan' | Soperton family frustrated with emergency vehicle response times

On December 13, the Brown family lost their daughter to a heart attack, and say she wasn't given a fair fighting chance because of ambulance wait times

SOPERTON, Ga. — Some folks in Treutlen County are sounding the alarm on ambulance response times for emergencies.

According to Sheriff Thomas Corbin -- they only have two staff members working on one ambulance at a time.

The Brown family said that's not good enough. Last December, their daughter Kim Edenfield lived in Soperton, until she suffered a heart attack and died waiting for an ambulance. 

"I had a wife, and son-in-law, and two grandchildren that had to sit there and witness this. And we were constantly calling wanting to know where the ambulance was at," Jimmy Brown said. 

Brown said an ambulance finally came to help his daughter, an hour and 13 minutes later. He said it was too late at that point. 

"My wife and son in law kept trying to do CPR on my daughter. I had to get them two children in the truck because they were going to pieces and they were just screaming, papa, papa, papa, papa, where they at?" Brown said. 

It haunts them knowing their daughter didn't get a fair fighting chance.

Sheriff Corbin said the problem is bigger than just one case, with a county population of over 6,000 people, according to the Census. 

"The best way to fix it would be to get another ambulance on call, that way we can have two. But those things are expensive," Corbin said. 

The county does have an additional two ambulances, but is lacking the staff the operate them. 

Brown said he was told they work on a mutual-aid agreement with other counties, and the night of his daughter's heart attack - an ambulance from Laurens County was supposed to respond, but it got turned around for a reason that he hasn't been able to figure out. 

"They have no backup plan. They call for this mutual aid, which is you try to get help from another county, which has been proven in this county you don't always get it, it don't always show up," Brown said. 

He said he's reached out the the county manager, sheriff, and county commissioners about the problem. Both the sheriff and the county manager agree it's a problem, but he said the county commissioners refuse to acknowledge the problem. 

Brown said he's willing to pay more taxes, or do whatever it takes to make sure other families don't have to wait as long for help as they did. 

Normally, county commissioners would approve paying for more ambulance services. 13WMAZ called the county manager on the morning of Nov. 13, who referred us to the County Attorney James Garner.

On Friday, Garner sent a statement saying that Hurricane Helene has complicated funding efforts. They say even though the county has not purchased a second ambulance, it does not mean the commission is ignoring the subject.

You can read the full statement here:

"The Treutlen County Board of Commissioners is charged with the duty of operating Treutlen County’s government in a manner that maximizes the services the county can provide in keeping with its available resources.  The topic of a second full-time ambulance being provided by the county has been discussed for some time by the Commissioners due to the strain caused by servicing the entire County and City of Soperton with one ambulance, especially considering the outsized impact caused by wrecks along Interstate 16 as it passes through the County.  However, no proposal or study has discovered a means to provide a second ambulance which would cost less than approximately $450,000.00 additional yearly costs to Treutlen County’s taxpayers.  

In the fiscal year 2023-2024, the Commissioners struggled with how to balance Treutlen County’s budget while simply maintaining its current levels of service, a problem brought on by of the skyrocketing costs of goods and services due to inflation.  After exploring every way to cut costs, the Commissioners were forced to levy a tax increase of one (1) mils, equaling $138,845 in new revenue, to balance the budget.  This tax increase was met with significant opposition by the citizens of the County.  In order to cover $450,000.00 in costs for  a second ambulance, taxes would have to be increased by two and one-quarter (2.25) mils under the County’s current valuations.  At this juncture, that is simply unacceptable to the Commissioners or a majority of the County’s citizens, especially with the uncertainty of the impact on Treutlen County’s tax base by the massive damages cause by Hurricane Helene.

The inability to fund a second ambulance at this time does not mean the Commissioners are ignoring the subject.  Hurricane Helene has furthered efforts already in process to increase efficiencies and cut costs through Treutlen County and the City of Soperton working more closely together on public safety issues.  Additionally, the County is doubling down its efforts to seek grants and increased revenues to increase resources on all fronts.  

Along with all other County income and expenditures, the topic of a second ambulance will be reviewed again as the Commissioners prepare the County’s budget for the 2024-2025 fiscal year.  All of Treutlen County’s citizens are encouraged to participate in the budget process,  share their priorities, and offer realistic solutions to the challenges the Commissioners have to address."

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