New EMS director announced

TIFFIN --- At the Seneca County Commissioners' meeting Thursday morning, the board announced that Seneca County EMS Director Don Ballah had resigned and Chris Hafley had been hired about a week ago. "Don Ballah stepped back," said County Administrator Barb Patterson during the meeting. "Getting back into the swing of the EMS world again with bringing in a new station may have put a bit of a toll on him. He has stepped back. He just wants to be a paramedic." According to information provided by the county, Ballah verbally resigned from the position on April 14. Patterson told the A-T that he wanted to spend more time with his family because he was working long hours as the director and 24-hour shifts as an ECHO Paramedic. Ballah will stay with Seneca County EMS as a crew paramedic. He was hired by the county Jan. 19 last year. Prior to working with Seneca County, he served as the executive vice president of North Central EMS from 1986 – 2018. North Central EMS is a private ambulance service provider. Hafley, a lifelong county resident and the Clinton Township Fire Department chief, will continue in his position. "I appreciate the opportunity to lead this group of EMS providers and to work with the commissioners," he said. "My goal is to move everything forward and make sure that Seneca County has the best EMS possible. We'll make sure that everything has ALS (Advance Life Support) out there." Hafley graduated from Tiffin University with a bachelor's degree in emergency management. He is certified by the Ohio Department of Public Safety as a paramedic, EMS instructor, firefighter II, fire inspector, fire inspector instructor, and fire instructor. Hafley has also received training through the Ohio Peace Officer Training Academy. Patterson shared that upon Ballah's resignation she "looked internally to see who had the qualifications that could be promoted to keep the continuity and momentum within the EMS system." Hafley was her choice due to his 44 years of experience in EMS, his position as the Clinton Township fire chief and his involvement in national, state and local organizations related to fire and EMS. EMS locations Patterson also provided an update on three of the new Seneca County EMS locations. The Bloomville station is almost complete with the finishing touches on wiring being the last step. The county is hopeful that the building will be completed within the next couple of weeks. The foundation for the New Riegel EMS station has been poured, and concrete flooring is likely to be laid this week. Patterson said she is working on a schedule to meet with the crew at New Riegel to stay informed about the building's progress. The commissioners' office is working with Bettsville Mayor Scott Harrison to prepare to receive bids for the Bettsville EMS station. A standing building in Bettsville will be renovated to serve as the village's EMS station. The county will lease the building for $1 as part of a 99-year contract. Patterson said the hope is that the two new stations and renovated station in Bettsville will be up and running by the end of the year. In other news Katie Cole, OSU Extension Office educator and 4-H youth development coordinator attended the meeting to provide the commissioners with an update about 4-H activities. Following the deadline to register for 4-H earlier this year, the organization reached a total enrollment of 1,100 people. Cole shared that 4-H's recent kick-off event was very well attended and successful overall. Registration to attend the 2024 4-H camp is open until May 20. The theme for this year's camp at Kelley's Island is game time and will be focused on board games. The camp is for children ages 8 – 13 and welcomes both 4-H members and non-members, but priority goes to 4-H members. The camp is June 11 – 14 and costs $190 for 4-H members and $200 for non-members. The cost includes a T-shirt, ferry fees, meals and lodging. Register for the camp by visiting: seneca.osu.edu/program-areas/4-h-youth-development/seneca-county-4-h-camp During the public comment portion of the meeting, Seneca County EMA Director John Spahr spoke about an idea he has for the county's Wireless Emergency Notification System. He explained that the $10,000 cost for the service is split into thirds between Tiffin, Fostoria and Seneca County. The system is used for weather alerts, road closures and other local notifications. Spahr said he recently learned that the county's townships and villages were not considered when the system started. He plans to visit the townships and villages to present information about the system and if any of the entities are interested, they will receive their own page within the system, allowing users to select which type of notifications they would like to receive. Spahr said he came up with a plan that would allow the county to continue to pay its third for the service and reduce Tiffin and Fostoria's costs for the system. Townships and villages can decide whether they are interested in the services and will be required to pay an invoice to be part of the system. To sign up for WENS, visit: https://entry.inspironlogistics.com/seneca_oh/wens.cfm? The commissioners approved the following supplemental appropriations: $87,984 from the general fund for contract services $78,657 from the maintenance and repair fund for garage equipment $16,446.50 from the enforcement and education fund for equipment The board also approved the following resolutions: Authorizing the Seneca County Board of Commissioners to accept the bid from Griffin Pavement Striping of $47,154 for the 2024 pavement marking program Setting 10 a.m. May 30 at the commissioners' office, 111 Madison St., as the time, date and place to receive sealed bids for the Crum Tile and Waterway project Authorizing payment of late penalty and interest on state withholding Accepting the petition of the annexation of real estate in the territory of Liberty Township to the village of Bettsville The next meeting is scheduled for 10 a.m. May 16 at the commissioners' office, 111 Madison St., Tiffin.