FLORENCE — After taking office for a new term Wednesday afternoon, Lauderdale County commissioners were given a draft of the bid specifications for emergency medical services for the county.

“This includes the service area populations as well as details and other specifics that we were asked to include in the bid package,” Lauderdale County Emergency Management Agency and 911 Director George Grabryan said.

The bid specifications for ambulance service is just for Lauderdale County. Grabryan said a set of bids for emergency medical services just for the city of Florence also has been prepared.

“As massive as this is, we need to set aside some time just to review (the bids) and discuss them before moving on,” Commission Chairman Dewey Mitchell said.

The commission will meet at 1 p.m. Dec 3 in a work session to discuss bid specifications.

“That will give us time to review the specifications and be ready with questions or discussions at that time,” Mitchell said.

On Oct. 22, the commission voted 3-1 to accept a proposal from Lauderdale EMS, which is owned by Helen Keller Hospital in Sheffield. Shoals Ambulance, which is based at Shoals Hospital in Muscle Shoals, was the only other company to submit a bid for the county’s service.

Florence officials voted Oct. 2 to go with Shoals Ambulance. The move resulted in termination of a joint, four-year agreement between the city and county to use the same primary emergency medical provider. That agreement has been in place for the past 14 years. Both entities now have to accept bids for ambulance service within their own jurisdictions.

In other business the commission:

• scheduled regular meetings for the second and fourth Mondays at 11 a.m.; work sessions will be the first Tuesdays at 2:30 p.m.
• accepted three Homeland Security grants totaling more than $32,000.
• approved the state holiday schedule closing the courthouse on Thanksgiving, the day after Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Year’s Day.
• agreed to pay $760 for an advertisement in the NCAA Division II National Championship Game program.
• approved printing bids from Herald Printing and Printers and Stationary Inc.

Tom Smith can be reached at 256-740-5757 or tom.smith@TimesDaily.com.