When emergency crews are called into action every second counts, a life may depend on it. In Coffee County five ambulance teams with EMS are tasked with covering more than 400 miles from the county's end to end.
Knowing where each crew is at all times is imperative. "If they don't get in route fast enough they know I hear it, and that's kind of what leads into this," explained EMS Director Michael Bonner.
Bonner is pushing to put GPS tracking devices in all of their ambulances. "The ability to get on my phone and see where all my ambulances are becomes huge," he said.
Officials first looked at adding GPS to emergency vehicles in Spring of 2015 after ambulance drivers with Coffee and Rutherford Counties were caught speeding in excess of 90 miles per hour on their way back from a call near Nashville.
At the time the project was not considered cost effective but after the recent tornado touchdown in Coffee County last month officials knew it was time to reconsider. "So this is what I needed to know where all my ambulances are," said Bonner.
The device he is hoping for costs $100 per unit with an additional $19 a month for each device, a bill that would fall on taxpayers but Bonner said it would not increase taxes.
The county will consider the proposal next month, if approved quickly emergency crews could see the devices in their ambulances as soon as February.
