The Durbin & Greenbrier Valley Railroad, doing business as Mountain Rail Adventures, and the Barbour County Emergency Squad are the Barbour County Chamber of Commerce Members of the Month in December.
Lars Byrne, left, is the Senior Dispatcher for the D&GVRR. Rob Jones, right, is the Director of the Emergency Squad.
The Durbin & Greenbrier Valley Railroad is a scenic rail excursion tourism attraction that operates vintage diesel and historic steam engines and passenger cars. The company offers train excursions through remote scenic location in the Monongahela National Forest as well as a variety of exclusive live performances and experiences on board. They provide individual and group packaging with competitive pricing, custom-built to the needs of their customers
Mountain Rail Adventures operates from May through December with a variety of two-four- or eight round-trip excursions to the wild and majestic areas of the Monongahela National Forest. “For those who want to stay in the area, there are custom-built packages including overnight accomodations, meal options, and Branson-style entertainment”, said Byrne.
“For local tourists,” he said, “we have new and distinctive special events, and for large groups we offer competitive rates and packaging. We hope you’ll make plans to visit us,” he said, at www.mountainrail.com or call (304) 636-9477 from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. The Durbin and Greenbrier Valley Railroad operates locations at the Elkins, Durbin, and Cass, West Virginia railroad depots. Their company mailing address is Post Office Box 702, Elkins, 26241.
The Barbour County Emergency Squad is an ambulance service which provides emergency and non-emergency ambulance services. It was founded in 1988 as a non-profit agency and currently has a fleet of 5 advanced life support certified ambulances and 35 employees. The emergency squad offers stand-by service at local athletic games and events, and houses the state’s only American Heart Association Community CPR training center.
“The training center,’ said Jones, “has CPR and First Aid classes for healthcare professionals and the lay public. The emergency squad was recently recertified as an ALS/BLS EMS Training Institute through the West Virginia Office of Emergency Services, and received a perfect score during a recent on-site inspection.
“The Barbour County Emergency Squad has an all-volunteer Board of Directors. Dr. Cecil Holbert serves as Medical Director. All billing services are conducted in-house,” he said. Jones is a 34-year veteran of the squad and has served as Director for the past 29 years. The emergency squad is located at 15394 Barbour County Highway in Philippi and can be reached at (304) 457-2037.