Volusia county approves new $13 million ME facility

VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla — In 2018, the Volusia County Medical Examiner’s office was in bad shape.

At the time, an overcrowded morgue, a backlog of more than 200 cases, and a crumbling building all cost the office its accreditation.

In the years since the office has worked hard to improve many of these issues, but one thing remains — the building.

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At a county council meeting Tuesday, Medical Examiner James Fulcher told commissioners that problems with the building are the only area left to fix.

“All things considered, the building represents the only deficiency you have in your county,” Fulcher said.

In a report to the county, Fulcher outlined the issues with the ventilation system and a lack of space throughout the building.

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“I can just let you imagine where things might get confused with body bags. It’s never happened to us, but there have been offices that have gotten in trouble with that,” Fulcher told commissioners.

Now the county has approved the construction of a $13 million facility near the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office evidence building off Tiger Bay road.

Councilwoman Heather Post says the construction is overdue.

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“Facilities, operations, personnel had all been terribly, terribly neglected, and the ME (medical examiner’s) office was absolutely one of those areas,” she said.

Once the facility is built, the county will be able to apply for accreditation.

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