Emergency medical responders across Raleigh County are getting a significant boost in funding to help maintain essential equipment and better serve residents.
The Raleigh County Commission has approved more than $90,000 in funding for local EMS providers. First responders say the support is crucial, as many people don’t realize the wear and tear that daily emergency service places on medical gear and supplies.
Captain Chris Graham with the Beckley Fire Department told 59News that keeping equipment updated and properly maintained is vital to ensuring quality care in the field.
“It’s really important that we maintain our equipment and keep it up to date,” Graham said. “Especially with emergency medical services, so many things have an expiration date.”
The grant was issued at the state level before being approved and distributed by the county commission. Commission President Greg Duckworth said the funding is always needed and that commissioners are glad to help support EMS crews.
“This grant came from West Virginia. It was a pass-through grant,” Duckworth explained. “There are requirements to how they can spend it but there are also requirements of how we disperse it. So it came to the county commission, and the requirements are that we disperse it evenly.”
EMS agencies in Whitesville, Ghent, Bradley, Coal City, and other communities were among those benefiting from the grant. Funding was allocated with additional consideration for providers offering patient transport services.