Peterborough Fire & Rescue will continue to respond to emergency calls in Dublin, even though it is in another county, after the Select Board decided Monday to not switch to Cheshire Ambulance.
Dublin is in Cheshire County, which prompted the Select Board to hear from Cheshire Ambulance this fall about being the on-call service for the town. Peterborough, which currently responds to calls from Dublin, is in Hillsborough County. In October, Select Board Chair Chris Raymond said that since Dublin is in Cheshire County, “We deserve their services.”
The response time from Peterborough being much shorter was a major factor in the Select Board’s decision. During the board’s October discussion, Dublin Deputy Chief of EMS Karen Vanderbilt said there’s a 25-minute delay for Cheshire County ambulances coming from Keene.
At Monday’s meeting, Vanderbilt noted the increased call volume for services this year.
“We’ve had 257 calls so far this year, 57 more than last year,” said Vanderbilt. She noted that 27 calls have been for detox issues from Avenues, a substance recovery center in Dublin.
“(They’re) a detox place. Why can’t they handle detox?” asked Vanderbilt.
“They should have people on staff who can handle those issues,” said board member Carole Monroe.
The board also discussed how an issue has arisen over utility companies erecting poles on scenic roads in town. “Scenic” is a designation for various roads in town, and the board noted that the utility permitting process could be clarified. Spectrum has been invited to the town offices on Dec. 30 to discuss the issue.
In other news, Daniel Cheshire of the Dublin Police Department is relocating from the area, so he has submitted his resignation from the force.