Mike Adkins, owner of Portsmouth Ambulance Service, said an extra ambulance will be left at the station in South Shore while the bridge is closed.

He said off-duty paramedics and volunteer firefighters will volunteer time to respond to emergency calls in Kentucky if an ambulance is already out on other calls.

``If we have to come from (Southern Ohio Medical Center) to a call in South Shore, we've found that going over the nearby Carl Perkins Bridge costs us an extra five or six minutes," he said. ``If you're talking about a major traffic accident or a heart-attack call, every second counts."

Having another vehicle already in Kentucky and ready to go will ``hopefully allow everything to work out for the best."

The 74-year-old Grant Bridge is being demolished to make way for a new one.

Last month, officials with the Ohio Department of Transportation said the span would close during the second week of June. But that date has been pushed back to early July, ODOT Spokeswoman Kathleen Fuller said Thursday.

Fuller said the completion date for the new bridge is set for June 30, 2004.

Jason Bryant, a volunteer firefighter in South Shore and full-time employee for Portsmouth Ambulance Service, said a schedule has been worked out among volunteers to make sure the ambulances in Kentucky can respond to calls any time.

``When they close the bridge, we still have an obligation to provide people in the community quality (emergency medical service) care," Bryant said. ``If something were to happen, we have to have someone there."

Adkins said Portsmouth Ambulance, which also has a station in Ohio, covers large areas of Greenup County west of the AA Highway.