Asking for additional funding to bolster their ranks. Firefighters in Somers are asking the town to help them add more staff to respond to emergency calls.
An ambulance rushes to a medical call in Somers from the fire department. It’s a type of call firefighters say they’ve seen more of in recent years. During a Board of Selectmen’s meeting Thursday, Fire Chief John Roache asked the town for additional funding in the department’s budget.
“My proposal is to hire one more full-time position this year,” he said.
He said this is to fill gaps, especially on nights and weekends which is staffed mainly by volunteers. Roache said it’s been tough finding people willing to work the shifts.
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“There’s a lot of time commitments. There’s a lot of people working two jobs,” he said.
He said having a career firefighter helps relieve pressure and burnout from existing volunteers.
“If you could have somebody that can also go help take care and take some of that load off for the volunteers, that makes it easier for the volunteers,” he said.
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Roache said the staffing concerns are meant to address not so much responding to major fire calls like the deadly fire that took the lives of four children last month, but more routine calls like persistent fire alarms.
“You never know. It can be a real fire, so we still need to have an appropriate response, so how do we make sure we have that response?” he said.
The Somers firefighters’ union presented a similar proposal but is requesting one more career firefighter position. Roache said he’s constrained by the budget number the town gives him.
“Would I love to have two? Absolutely, but the reality is I’ve got to meet the requirements,” he said.
The Board of Selectmen did not make any decision at the meeting. The first selectman said that will come weeks later after reviewing the fire department’s budget proposal.
