MECKLENBURG COUNTY, N.C. — Friday night, WCNC Charlotte confirmed that Charlotte Fire Department intends to begin negotiations over a new contract with Medic, which would terminate its existing contract.
Charlotte Fire released a statement stating that the goal of the new negotiations is to ensure that there are fire trucks and resources available for true emergencies. In order to do this, they need to reduce their dispatch to low-level EMS calls.
Rapid growth in and around Charlotte is placing more pressure on first responders and an inevitable increase in emergency calls.
The department said the current agreement is no longer effective and needs to evolve to meet the growing and changing needs of the community in light of the city and county's "exponential population and infrastructure growth."
The statement also said, in part:
Our goal is to ensure that we are not only meeting but exceeding the expectations of our community. By renegotiating the terms of our agreement, we aim to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of our joint operations with MEDIC. This process is about being proactive and ensuring that the future needs of Charlotte are met with the best possible emergency response strategies.
CFD says there will be no disruption in service during the contract re-negotiations and find a way to ensure that emergency responders have the resources to deliver essential services.