6 hires to help staff Fostoria rescue service

6/20/2001

FOSTORIA - The city of Fostoria hired six firefighters yesterday as part of its plan to take over ambulance service July 1.

Mayor John Davoli will swear in the new city employees, who will include three paramedics, at 9 a.m. tomorrow in city hall. The hires will boost the department's strength from 20 to 26.

City council voted June 5 to authorize the fire department to buy two ambulances and hire up to nine employees. The additional manpower will allow Fostoria to expand the number of firefighters on each shift from six to eight people to handle the increased runs.

The city's contract with Stofcheck Ambulance Service, Inc., expires July 1. After receiving bids from Stofcheck and two other companies that called for substantial rate increases, the city decided to offer ambulance service itself.

Fostoria, a city of 14,983 that is 35 miles southeast of Toledo, projects an average of two emergency calls a day, or about 720 a year, based on figures provided by Stofcheck for last year's runs.