Suit faults Northwood’s medical response time

BOWLING GREEN -- A Northwood woman has filed suit against the city, claiming her husband died because of a slow response by emergency medical service personnel.

Ellen Jean Mix filed a complaint in Wood County Common Pleas Court Thursday that names Fire Chief Timothy Romstadt, Mayor Mark Stoner, Administrator Dennis Recker, and unnamed dispatchers and city employees.

In the complaint, assigned to Judge Robert Pollex, Mrs. Mix said she called 911 three times over 22 minutes on March 3 when her husband became seriously ill. Only on the third call, when she reported that he had stopped breathing, “did dispatch personnel take steps to ensure that EMT personnel were engaged and en route,” the complaint charges. They arrived 28 minutes after the initial call.

The complaint asks more than $25,000 in damages. It also alleges senior officials in Northwood had been warned repeatedly that emergency medical response capability was deficient.

City officials could not reached for comment.