Berkshire Fire Department Woes

I got a note on facebook from a friend who took the Firefighter One (FF1) class with me in the summer of 2007. She reported that half of the Berkshire Fire Department had resigned, presumably in protest of the hamlet's vote yesterday against the building of a new fire station. Apparently the current station is hopelessly outdated and is cramped and unsafe.

This is interesting in light of what's going on in New Paltz. Because of the recession (and maybe some other fiduciary reasons), our mayor froze all of the budgets under his power. This even meant that our department has to put in a special request to him whenever we want to buy drinking water, for example, or soap to wash the trucks.

In response to this, a local named Butch Dener put together a rally to raise money for (and bring cases of water to) our fire department. I think about 500 people came out, and we received about 250 cases of water and several thousand dollars. It was a great event, and I'm sure it was the start of a new tradition.

My friend tells me (via facebook) that the chiefs and most of the Berkshire FD resigned, including everyone I knew from FF1. She said that in addition to the station being in shambles, there is a piece of apparatus that's out of service pending necessary repairs and that there were other problems with the department (notwithstanding the terrible morale of the fire fighters).

The resignations could have some serious implications down the line. It will put a great strain on the surrounding fire departments and means trouble for anyone in Berkshire who is foolish enough to start a house fire or drive a car into a tree. I'm hoping that the problem is resolved quickly -- maybe some emergency funds will turn up, or the town will re-vote. My fear is that it could cause a trickle effect as FDs around the state decide that they have to follow suit in order to make a case for their needs.

Here is the article from yesterday's Berkshire online news (from a local station there):

BERKSHIRE VOTES DOWN NEW FIRE STATION
By WBNG News
Story Created: Jun 30, 2009 at 10:36 PM EDT
Story Updated: Jun 30, 2009 at 10:37 PM EDT
The Berkshire Fire Department will not get a new fire station..
By a vote of 220 to 171, taxpayers rejected a proposal to build a new facility. The price tag was about 1.5 million dollars. Village tax rates would have risen to about a 1.70 dollars per thousand of accessed value. Lines to vote were out of the door here at the current station which is 53 years old.
"I voted no because the taxes in New York state are terrible and we don't need no more addition. Can't afford it," said Berkshire resident, Robert Price.
Those in favor of the project said the current station is too cramped and doesn't properly hold all the department's vehicles. The department will now examine the possibility of renovating the current station.