Letters: May 16/13

May 16, 2013

Ambulance Cuts

When I first heard that they were cutting an ambulance and paramedics in Kingston, I was amazed that given the increases in calls from an aging population they would cut frontline services. What I didn't realize was how, here in Central Frontenac, it would affect us directly. I think a lot of people here still don't.

When Kingston's ambulances are all busy, first Sydenham's ambulance , then our Parham ambulance must go to Kingston - not necessarily to answer a call in Kingston, but to wait on standby in case an ambulance is required within the city. As a result of this standby coverage for the city, we here go without an ambulance available, often for hours. Already, before the cuts have taken place, this can happen as often as two or three times a week. The time it takes paramedics and the ambulance to cover a call isn't simply the time it takes to go to the hospital and back – once they are at the hospital they must wait to offload their patients and spend time to fill out forms, with their ambulance unavailable to respond to additional calls. A single call can tie up an ambulance for hours, leaving us without service. After the cuts, the time we spend without service will be even more frequent.

If there is no ambulance in Sydenham or Parham, we are dependent on one coming from Lanark County or Northbrook, which could be an hour away. Out here distance means critically important time – in a serious emergency that delay means a very, very long wait for help. Because we cover Kingston's shortfall, the cuts are directly to our service, cuts which given the distances and rough roads our ambulances must travel can be lethal. The irony is that these cuts will come into effect on the May 24 weekend, just when our cottage populations expand our need for ambulance service, and the risk from outdoor activities and holiday traffic is greatest.

Lisa Moses

The 'Huge Bust'

My wife and I moved to our land in Central Frontenac a year ago and have been working very hard to realize our dream of growing our own food and livestock. We are slowly turning our thirty acres of logged land into a productive, horticultural concern. We love it here. We have friendly neighbours, excellent farmers’ markets nearby, local merchants and farm supply shops for everything we need. We work hard, sleep well and are surrounded by natural beauty.

One thing that is difficult about our situation is establishing our reputations and getting to know the neighbours. For example, on Saturday afternoon our neighbour came rushing up the driveway. He and some of the other local guys had been sitting around the garage talking and wanted to know what the big police bust had been about. The guys had ascertained that two police cars were parked at the end of our driveway, one of them blocking it "to cut off escape", one of them stayed all day. "Why were there cops all over the place today?!"

I happen to know about one of the police cars that was here on Saturday. My friends had arrived from Toronto in a used OPP cruiser they own. I suppose the second car was there to investigate it. Maybe to run the personalized plate and determine that the car wasn't a stolen, used police car being used to ferry migrant workers here (or something).
About a month ago we had a different visit from the police. When my wife left for town she ran into a cruiser part way up the driveway (well past the "No Trespassing" sign that we use to discourage weekend ATV people). The cruiser backed out of the drive and when confronted, the police officer explained to her that he thought my pickup truck had been "abandoned". He explained that "a lot" of vehicles are abandoned around here and sometimes they are lit on fire.

Being about fifty, I intend to live here in Central Frontenac for another two-dozen years or so. Maybe, after the first dozen years, when I feel more like I belong, a newer family will move in and the police will get curious about them. When that happens I'm not going to go rushing up their driveway to find out what the "big bust" was about. I'm going to tell them to call the police and introduce themselves. It's probably a lot easier to make this a home when you don't have to explain the police surveillance to neighbours and/or watch the end of the driveway for people lurking there.

The police around my home are forced to gather intelligence about me by running my vehicle license plates and that of my guests, presumably because there are a lot of trucks lit on fire and other dire activities to protect me and other landowners from. Also, because I'm "new", the police have instant "probable cause", if it is clandestine. Apart from that I love this place.

David Bates