Letter to the editor: Michael W. Carlson
Jan. 27, 2022
Vote no to renew the EMS levy.
First and foremost, San Juan Island is truly blessed by the excellent emergency fire and medical services we have as provided by the many volunteers and paid professionals who serve our island community. I appreciate all that they do!
As a longtime resident of San Juan Island, I feel that EMS and Fire District 3 should be a consolidated organization. It’s just common sense!
Fire district #3 has especially demonstrated tightly coordinated teamwork whatever the call has been. To that end, having two separate and divided emergency services does not make sense.
Doesn’t it make sense have one emergency service that does all of the following services with a central dispatch that has all of the equipment within their control whether the call requires land or sea as follows?:
- Emergency Medical Services/EMS (Basic Life Support)
- Structural and Wildland Firefighting
- Vehicle Extrication
- Search and Rescue
- Technical Rope Rescue
- Level 1 HAZMAT
- Marine Response
Not only does Fire District 3 provide excellent emergency services their fiscal track record has demonstrated to me that we can trust them to continue to provide the excellent services we’ve been getting without adding more to my property tax bill. Our fire department hasn’t asked for an adjustment to the fire services levy in several years. Yet they have made significant improvements in training; medical, marine, and fire services; educational outreach; and community risk reduction.
It’s time to move forward with the consolidation. Voting to approve the EMS levy will only delay the inevitable of the community supported merger of San Juan EMS into San Juan Fire District 3.
Please join me in voting no on the EMS levy and to continue with the process of merging the SJC Hospital EMS with San Juan Island’s Fire District 3.
Michael W. Carlson
San Juan Island