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Northern Pendleton Fire
By Carolyn Reid
BUTLER — At its April 8 monthly meeting, the North Pendleton Fire District once again met with questions regarding the death of Justin Brown, a resident who passed away, according to family and friends, while waiting for an ambulance that was to be seven minutes away but was answering a call out of the district at the time of Brown’s need.
Brown’s sister, Amber Cropper, questioned why Southern Campbell was not called in for mutual aid.
She expressed her concern for citizens in the district, people who pay for EMS protection and fire protection for their own area.
She stated she would not advise anyone to move into the county based on this experience.
Brown’s mother, Cornelia Brown, related her husband had had a heart attack in 2006, and the ambulance went to the wrong house.
Justin, as a young man, had tried to flag them into the correct house, and then he ran to get them so they could help his father.
Reflecting on that memory, she said, “I never dreamed it would by Becky (Brown’s wife), us, their boys…”
She also questioned whether the department had two emergency medical service personnel on the ambulance 24/7 as was voted in since she had heard this had not been taking place.
She stated that while she now lives in Fort Thomas, she hears ambulances all the time, and those sirens take her back to the day her son died.
Andy Geers expressed frustration the board had not offered condolences to the family.
Board member James Beebe did offer his condolences, explaining to the Browns he could empathize since he had lost his child nine years before.
In response to the questions, Board Chair James Bowling held up a binder of information that he had compiled. He said he told everyone at the last meeting that the investigation would take six months, but someone who had every right to do so had appealed to Kentucky Board of Emergency Medical Services and to the Attorney General, and their response would not come before Aug. 22, delaying the investigation further.
“We are working to get to the bottom… trying to find out why,” he told everyone in attendance. “We have to answer to higher powers.”
NEW BUSINESS
New business introduced the need for a load system which would cost the department $13,911.94 annually.
The bulk of that system could be covered by money from Kentucky Board of Emergency Medical Services for the first couple of years, possibly, leaving the district responsible for $3,911.94 for that time.
The system would help load patients up to 700 pounds and will help smaller responders load bigger people with less risk of injury to the responders and further injury to the patients.
The board also discussed the radio upgrade expenses. The radios need to be upgraded to match the tower upgrades that are coming and to talk to other departments.
In other business, the treasurer stated the department’s revenue is on target for the fiscal year, but the board reported the costs of repairs to the engines were far above the monies they had available at that time.
Adam Fuller, retired chief of NPFD, is working on grants to pay the employees. The plan is to pay four people per day for the next three years.
The parking lot and the front apron of the building are in need of repair, and the dryer for the department needs to be replaced. The tower on Station 2 needs work, as well.
Jeremy Cox, who had resigned by the end of the last meeting, rescinded his resignation later, Bowling explained, and he was sitting on the board for the meeting.
Due to revisions in the KRS, the board needs to revise its bylaws. Bowling had emailed the information to the board in order they can work on it next meeting.
The board rehired the lawn service and stated they did not know where pest control for the building stood at the time.
The board then went into executive session.
The next regular meeting of the NPFD will be held 7 p.m. May 13 in the firehouse meeting room.
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Closed session was in violation
FRANKFORT — The Northern Pendleton Fire District Board of Trustees violated the Open Meetings Act when it conducted a closed session to discuss personnel issues, according to a ruling released Monday from Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman's Office.
The act "does not authorized discussion of general personnel matters in secret," the ruling states.
The violation occurred when the board adjourned into executive session during its March 11 meeting to discuss personnel issues.
A further violation occurred when the chief was “selectively admitted” into the session with no explanation regarding the need for his presence, according to the ruling.
NPFD Chair Jason Bowling told the Falmouth Outlook he has no comment at this time other than their legal counsel, Joe Cottingham, is looking into the ruling.