- April 20, 2024
-
-
Loading
Loading
Volusia County's Director of Emergency Medical Services John Zaragoza was placed on administrative leave on Wednesday, Dec. 12, a county community information employee confirmed the following day.
Zaragoza had multiple meetings with Volusia County Public Protection Director Joe Pozzo, where it was "mutually agreed Zaragoza would resign," wrote Joanne Magley, the county's community information director, in an email. She said Zaragoza is on administrative leave until the county finalizes its transition plan.
"We wish him well going forward," Magley wrote.
Zaragoza's position will be filled in the interim by James Judge, director of Emergency Management in Volusia County.
The county's EMS has been under scrutiny for the past few months as concerns over response times and ambulance staffing have been brought to the table for discussion. The city of Port Orange is considering purchasing its own ambulance because of this.
In September, County Councilwoman Heather Post was called "reckless" for stating that EMS was operating at a "scary" level and that ambulances are not able to timely respond to calls on a regular basis. At the council's meeting on Sept. 18, shortly after County Council Chair Ed Kelley was transported to the hospital with a response time between 16-18 minutes, Post presented data on calls with long response times, which EMS Medical Director Peter Springer called outliers.
This story was updated at 11:13 a.m., Monday, Dec. 17, to incorporate the county's response on Zaragoza.
