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Published May 24 in The Big Sandy News Lifestar fate threatened by health issue By
MINDI THOMPSON LOUISA — The future of Lawrence County’s only ambulance service is uncertain as the owner of the service battles serious health problems. Larry Leedy, owner of LifeStar Ambulance Service, suffered a heart attack last year. Since then, he has been in and out of the hospital from complications, according to his son, William Leedy. The younger Leedy addressed the Lawrence County Fiscal Court during its regular meeting Monday regarding the options the county has regarding the ambulance service. William Leedy said that the county could take over the service if his father should decide to sell it. Judge-Executive David L. Compton and the four magistrates discussed the possibility of the county taking ownership of the service, which, they said, might require a new tax to cover the cost of operation. Magistrate Gary Nelson commended William Leedy for bringing the issues to the attention of the fiscal court. “We certainly don’t want to be scrambling around at the last minute trying to figure out what we’re going to do,” Nelson said. “The service is not for sell right now,” Leedy said, adding that his father simply wanted to explore every option before making any decisions. Leedy suggested the fiscal court hold public meetings on the issue. “We received some criticism when we took over the ambulance service because we didn’t approach the county about it first,” Leedy said. Larry Leedy purchased the business from Phillip Elliott, who owns ambulance services in several Big Sandy counties. During Elliott’s ownership, the service was constantly under fire from county residents and officials who claimed ambulances were slow to respond to emergencies. The state temporarily shut down the business before Leedy purchased it.
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