A representative for ESIP pointed out during Wednesday's board meeting that the ambulance service could be affected by Y2K in several ways, and should they be involved in a law suit because of Y2K they will be covered. 

Computer chips in the ambulances could malfunction, as well as the ambulance service's phone system and biomedical equipment, she said.

"This is one department we don't want to go down," said Barren County Judge-Executive Freddie Travis, who is a member of the board. "If it does go down we will probably have more liability than we will have in all the other departments."

Jason Chenoweth, finance director for the ambulance service, said he thought the ambulance service would be equal in liability with the fire and police departments.

"I feel like we've tried to do as much as we can to prepare," said Mike Swift, director of the ambulance service. "I anticipate the problems with Y2K are probably going to be more people perception problems than actual automated or mechanical problems. We are faced every day with problems when computers go down. I think the issue is going to be how people perceive things."

Swift continued to say that the ambulance service has done everything they could "humanly be expected to do."

"No one really knows what will happen," Swift said. " I think it will be the equivalent of what we would have if we had an ice storm."

He also said that Barren and Metcalfe Counties are filled with good people who will come forward to help when faced with adversity.

Travis agreed with Swift about the severity of the Y2K problem based on how people perceive the issue.

Swift said he thought the biggest concern as far as Y2K compliance would be the ambulances. He said he made several attempts to contact the ambulance builder, McCoy Miller, and Ford Motor Company, about whether the ambulance's computers are Y2K compliant but has not heard anything back from either company.

There is also a possibility that the ambulance service's biomedical equipment could go down if it is not Y2K compliant, but he has been told that the equipment is compliant and should not be affected.