The Council Chambers in the Borough Hall was filled with people when the council president called the meeting to order at 7:00 pm last night. All of the councillors were present as was the borough manager, borough finance officer and solicitor. The mayor was absent.

In nearly record time, the council moved quickly though the agenda items and the meeting was adjourned at 7:39 pm.

Agenda – page one

Agenda – page two

Council president Michael Beury began the meeting with a roll call; a moment of silence; the reciting of the “pledge of allegiance” to the flag and an announcement introducing the “QRS people and everything else in the room” even though they were not on the program.

Columbia Quick Response Service (QRS) EMS chief introduced members of the Northwest EMS, Columbia No. 1 Fire Department, Columbia Police Department and Columbia QRS and presented certificates acknowledging their actions that led to the “life-saving” of a 70-something man in cardiac arrest on January 31. which resulted in their successfully resuscitating the individual.

According to the American Heart Association, “Cardiac arrest occurs when the heart stops due to a failure in its electrical system. Patients can sometimes survive if they receive CPR immediately and a defibrillator is used quickly to shock the heart into a normal rhythm. About 360,000 out-of-hospital cardiac arrests are reported each year in the United States, according to the American Heart Association. Only 9.5 percent of people who suffer a cardiac arrest outside the hospital survive.”

Following the ceremony, the responders and their guests left the meeting; two citizens remained for the balance of the meeting.

Posted at the Columbia QRS facebook page are additional pictures and this narrative: “Tonight at the monthly Columbia Borough Council meeting, providers from the Columbia QRS, NorthWest EMS, Columbia No. 1 FD, & the Columbia Borough Police were recognized for their life saving actions at an incident of Cardiac Arrest on January 31st, 2014 which resulted in a successful resuscitation.”

Most of the agenda items were dispatched in a routine manner, there was more discussion about Agenda Item II., 10., b.; following the discussion, Council took no action on the motion as written. The discussion asked about the propriety of giving donated automated external defibrillators (AEDs) to a private individual, Scott Ryno. The discussion also asked about the possible legal ramifications of donating borough owned equipment to just one private enterprise.

According to this Lancaster General Health news release, “Within a decade, the (Heart and Stroke) Foundation donated 145 defibrillators, making Lancaster County one of the first U.S. communities where every police vehicle was equipped with an AED. Police officers were trained to use them, as were volunteers near (Park City Center) and far (mission workers in Albania). The LHVI will continue to support the AED program and other community initiatives to transform heart care in the region through its Mission Committee.”

Other discussion, not on the agenda, included:

• Yard Waste curbside service will begin on Monday, April 7.
• Columbia’s Annual Spring Clean Up Day will be April 26. Here’s information about the 2013 SPRING CLEAN UP at the Borough Website.