Andrea Macko in The Greenville Pioneer reports that over 100 residents in the Bates Hollow area have signed a petition requesting different first responders after several slow responses from emergency services. Dottie Como organized the petition after a Labor Day incident where it took 45 minutes for an ambulance to arrive for her neighbor. Another resident of the area that abuts Preston Hollow in Albany County and Broome in Schoharie County, Mary Leggit, says of a different incident with her daughter, "We would have been better off throwing her in a car and driving ourselves." Emergency response in the area comes from Middleburgh, and the petition asks to have that changed to Rensselaerville, which responded to the area before a 911 system change. Residents say Middleburgh is 18.2 miles away, and Rensselaerville just 8.6 miles away. Como organized a public meeting with the Broome Town Board at 7 p.m. Sept. 24 at the Broome Town Hall on Route 145.