(JOHN MCDONALD / iNFOnews.ca)

Kamloops is on the list of communities to get a bolstered service from BC Ambulance, according to according to Mayor Reid Hamer-Jackson.

He used the update in his efforts to stall a million-dollar initiative to add a dedicated medical response unit to the fire department.

"There's new information that we're one of a few communities in the province that they're going to be extending ambulance service," Hamer-Jackson said at a Feb. 20, committee of the whole meeting.

He said he learned of the expansion when he called BC Ambulance Service just before the meeting, but he said he couldn't share any more details.

An announcement is expected in the coming weeks, Hamer-Jackson said, but BC Emergency Health Service, which oversees the ambulance service, has not confirmed the information and did not respond to questions about the expansion from iNFOnews.ca.

Hamer-Jackson said he wanted to postpone any decisions on a proposed medical unit for Kamloops Fire Rescue, which if approved, could cost around $1 million annually.

Around 60 per cent of firefighter call outs have been dedicated to medical calls in recent years, going back to at least 2019.

Fire chief Ken Uzeloc told council those calls are mostly focused to patients on the North Shore or Downtown who have no fixed address.

Kamloops Fire Rescue has seen a "dramatic" increase in calls for assistance from BC Emergency Health Services in recent years, resulting in full-size fire engines being sent for medical emergencies, according to a staff report.

The proposal to add a dedicated medical unit arose during a closed council meeting, Uzeloc said. It would include one SUV and six new hires dedicated to the medical team. It would be focused on responding to calls downtown and on the North Shore.

A rendered image of an SUV that could be used for the proposed Kamloops Fire Rescue medical team.

Image Credit: CITY OF KAMLOOPS

The $83,000 SUV, staffed by two people at a time, would not be used to carry patients to the hospital, but it would free up time for fire calls and ease the wear on fire trucks.

Other cities use similar units, which includes Uzeloc's former fire department in Calgary. That city's fire department just added its second medical unit earlier this month, according to CTV News.

Hamer-Jackson sees the move as a "slippery slope" into taking on provincial responsibilities, and he wasn't alone.

Councillor Nancy Bepple questioned the move, bringing up ongoing efforts to tally "downloading" of costs and responsibilities from the province.

"We asked on one hand for a report on downloading. Then on the other hand we're moving into another area that is... up-grabbing," Bepple said.

Uzeloc said the move wouldn't be adding another service, suggesting it would a "different way of delivering" what the department already does.

Although the mayor used the news of a BC Ambulance expansion to stall a vote on the project, staff assured him council won't make any decisions until March 5. The report on costs "downloaded" by the province will come to council the same day.

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