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By JOYANNA LOVE/ Managing Editor

The Chilton County E911 Board and Regional Paramedical Services have signed a memorandum of understanding.

According to the document, “The purpose of this Memorandum of Understanding is an emergency action being taken by the District to secure ambulance service to the citizens of Chilton County upon the closure of the Care Ambulance Clanton office. The District is actively working to issue and secure a primary ambulance provider through competitive bidding.”

The 911 Board plans to create a committee to develop the specifications that would be needed for the bid. Chairman Joseph Parnell said 911 Director Terra Scott was gathering information, including sample bid specs from other counties, for the board to review prior to establishing a committee.

Parnell said he expects that the board will review the sample bid specs in a work session to determine “the ones that we want to emulate.”

After that, a committee would be formed to further develop recommendations for the bid specs.

Signing the MOU was unanimously approved during an emergency called meeting in late June.

Since Parnell was unable to attend, Sheriff John Shearon ran the meeting. He said a meeting for the Chilton County Volunteer Firefighters Association to select members for the committee and a meeting of the 911 board to select representatives were set for July.

As a part of the MOU, “Chilton County 911 district agrees to dispatch Regional Paramedical Services as the primary ambulance provider for ground transport to all responding agencies in Chilton County, excluding the areas primarily served by the Jemison Fire Department who

provides their own Municipal Ambulance Service, Regional Paramedical Services may

be called as a secondary (response) for Jemison Fire Department.”

The agreement does allow for Chilton County 911 to dispatch to another ambulance service if one is not available from RPS.

“Regional Paramedical Services agrees to provide ambulance services to all responding agencies of Chilton County in a timely manner when notified by the Chilton County 911 District,” the MOU states.

The agreement will be in effect until June 1, 2021 or until the Chilton County E911 board bids out the service and awards a bid, whichever happens first.

“This Memorandum of Understanding is the complete agreement between Chilton County 911 District and Regional Paramedical Services and may be amended only by a written agreement signed by each of the parties involved with a minimum of 60 days notice,” according to the document.