Alleghany EMS returns 'home'

Just over a year after losing their home to an electrical fire, the Emergency Medical Service crew is now back home beside the Sparta Fire Department. Their first day in the refurbished facility was June 14.

Like the former building on Cox Street, the newly constructed EMS base has four bays for its ambulances, a living room, a kitchen and four bedrooms for those working 24-hour shifts and a storage facility upstairs.

Paramedic Carl Moss remarked, "I think we're really blessed to have this nice building, plus it's one of the safest buildings. We've got a fire alarm system in it and a sprinkler system. The way it's set up it's so much more user friendly than the old one as far as having a kitchen next to our day room. We're so tickled with it, we can't be more pleased."

Paramedics Carroll Royal and Donny Brown agreed.

Comparing the current facility to the building that once stood on the property, Moss said, "Our old building was inefficient. It had age on it. As far as the age part goes, we were having issues with the ceiling tiles…I just can't express how much nicer it is in here."

Pausing in the kitchen area, Administrative Director Linda Edwards commented, "It's also very handy on holidays and during bad weather when the restaurants are closed. It's nice to have a kitchen area where they can cook and they don't have to worry about not having any place to eat."

The facility also includes an office for Edwards, an office-one corner for the training officer and the second corner for paramedics to do reports-a handicapped bathroom, two additional bathrooms, one with a shower, as well as a storage facility that is easier to get to when compared to the one in the previous building. In addition, there is a training room and exercise equipment including a donated spin cycle and an multi-gym purchased by the EMT employees.

Hampton noted, "(I like) the way it's laid out, the kitchen next to the dayroom. it's better than it was in the very, very back. The fire alarm is nice and the sprinkler system. Hopefully we'll never have to use it. The air and heat system is a whole lot better than the old one. Usually we roasted in the summertime and froze in the winter; it's going to be a whole lot nicer."

Brown added, "The Lord has blessed us with a good home."

April 2009

The month of April 2009 started out as any other month for the Alleghany Emergency Medical Service, but little did the workers know that on April 3, their "home" would be destroyed, engulfed in flames.

According to earlier published reports, the fire caused in excess of $450,000 in damages and the county's two backup ambulances were heavily damaged. After spending a short time based at Alleghany Memorial Hospital, Businessmen Clint and Brad Bedsaul rented the vacated Alleghany Chevrolet location to the EMS, where they stayed until work on the base was complete. Construction-done by F.G. Dillard and Sons-began in January of this year.

That fateful April night, Brown, Hampton, Moss and Royal were on call.