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HomeMy WebLinkAboutHuron Expositor, 2016-08-17, Page 15Crowd gathers in Courthouse Park to protest the elimination of Advanced Care Paramedic Program in Huron County Laura Broadley Postmedia Network On Aug. 10 a crowd of about 50 people gathered outside the Huron County Courthouse to protest coun- cil's decision to eliminate the Advanced Care Paramedic (ACP) program before the council convened for a meeting. Brian Humphrey, Cana- dian Union of Public Employees national ser- vices representative, said the group was protesting because the county invested in the program, then decided to downsize it before eliminating it altogether in the middle of July. "You [have] politicians that are making decisions on the healthcare and emergency responses within the County of Huron on behalf of the residents. A lot of the residents are upset about that," Hum- phrey said. Huron County is the first the province's first region to eliminate the ACP program once it was already established. Council's decision to get rid of the program came after a review of the pro- gram came back that said while ACPs have additional skills, they are seldom used, said Huron County Warden Paul Gowing, in an interview with the London Free Press. Some councillors expressed concern that the outer regions of the county weren't being served as well as others. Gowing also said there was a shrinking gap between what a ACP and PCP can do. Humphrey said that although an ACP's skills aren't used daily, they are essential. The cost of the program was $1,50 per Huron County resident per year, according to Humphrey. "That's the real issue. That's why people are out here," Humphrey said. Wednesday, August 17, 2016 • Huron Expositor 15 Laura Broadley Matthew Lloyd and Ruthann Knight sit on the steps of the Huron County Courthouse as a part of a larger group protesting the elimination of the Advanced Care Paramedic program on Aug. 10. SWIFT update is good news for local Internet providers Laura Broadley Postmedia Network Local Internet providers in Huron County can rest easy as recent Southwestern Inte- grated Fibre Technology updates indicate they won't be left out of the process. Ashfield-Colborne- Wawanosh Deputy Reeve Roger Watt, who serves on the SWIFT board, updated Huron County council about the project and its impact on local Internet providers. SWIFT was initiated by the Western Ontario Wardens' Caucus as a way to build a high-speed fibre optic broadband network for all regions in the province. Watt said that when he started the process he wanted to see local providers urging council to join SWIFT, and right now the process is moving in the right direction. At the end of July the fed- eral and provincial govern- ments announced it would be pumping $180 million into SWIFT, which will pro- vide "the last mile" of Huron County with high- speed Internet. The total cost of the project is $281 million. Huron County will be responsible for $680,000 PARK THEATRE 011-',;,..7 • GODERICH 519 524 MI. FOR MOVIE INFORMATION... wwanr.rn€�wii link .ce dd y -66-265-343a over five years for its partici- pation in the SWIFT project. Watt said the priorities of SWIFT will be determined by members in consultation with experts. It will work in collaboration with service providers who own and operate the network. Watt said the project was a long way from "shovels hit- ting the ground," but that next year as a starting point was doable. Huron County Warden Paul Gowing said the county has done the right thing by maintain its mem- bership in SWIFT. He said he believes that the local Internet providers have WAWANOSH in the MOONLIGHT 41.1 .,; FREE Evening Walk at the Wawanosh Nature Centre Wed. Aug. 24 1 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM 38854 Nature Centre Rd., North Huron 1519-335-3557 I mvca.on.ca been listened to, and that the county needed to pay the $30,000 membership fee it owes to SWIFT. "The two levels of govern- ment above us are throwing in equal shares to move for- ward with SWIFT and we certainly need to be involved. It will bring dollars to fix the issue of level of ser- vice of Internet across the county," Gowing said. "I'm certainly more com- fortable with the level of col- laboration from the SWIFT group and the local provid- ers in Huron County." FORTHCOMING MARRIAGE Mike Campbell & Kelly Jewitt 'CSL/)' We are pleased to announce the marriage of Mike Campbell & Kelly Jewitt. Friday, August 19th. Love from your families & friends.