Hope for 24-hour ambulance in Ark low

October 1994

A site for a 24-hour ambulance base in Arklow is being examined by the Eastern Health Board., Fine Gael councillor Thomas Honan revealed this week.

According to Cllr Honan the location for the around-the-clock ambulance service is likely to be the present EHB site at Castlepark.

He said that the EHB site emerged as a front runner from a meeting of the General Hospital care committee last week and a number of aspects relating to its use were currently being considered.

Just over a year ago EHB programme manager Martin Gallagher said that he was satisfied ‘ that the current level of service being provided in the Arklow area is adequate to meet present needs.’

Cllr Honan, who has been to the fore in the local campaign to secure a 24 hour ambulance service, said that it was gratifying to note that as a result of his motion tabled and passed unanimously by Wicklow County Council, the EHB had reviewed the situation.

He said that the fact that they had now done a complete u-turn in the space of one year showed that this Government was quite obviously responding to people power and it was something they should bear in mind in their quest for Urban Renewal designation and all indoor heated swimming pool for Arklow.

It was now apparant, he said, that an ambulance based in the Arklow area on a 24-hour basis would be a reality in 1995 and the campaign was now inexorably moving to a successful conclusion.

At this most sensitive time, he hoped that all public representatives involved inthis campaign would encourage and support the EHB in choosing an appropriate ambulance base.

A meeting between Arklow GPs and the EHB was taking place earlier this week to evaluate the use of defibrillators in general practice.

Cllr Honan hoped that the public would give their GPs the support they needed in the development of this pilot project which taking into the account of the calibre of the local doctors would be undoubtedly a success.