Liberty firefighters say levy is needed

Liberty firefighters say levy is needed

LIBERTY — Firefighters say a lack of funds has forced the department to close each of the township’s fire stations for half a day everyday since the middle of last month.

The township has two fire stations — one on Belmont Avenue, the other on Logangate Road. Those stations are usually staffed with a minimum of three firefighters each, but Chief Michael Durkin said a lack of funds and manpower has changed that staffing.

Durkin said the Belmont station has been shut down from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily. The Logangate station, he said, has been closed in the evenings from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m.

“We are running with two guys off injured and one guy recently retired who will not be replaced, so that is leaving us a little shorthanded,” he said. “We get down to three guys on a shift with two stations, and a three-man minimum staffing requirement, so we end up having to shut down one station.”

For the complete story, see Thursday’s Vindicator and Vindy.com.