Report: Close Some Md. Departments, Merge Others

Feb. 25, 2015
Baltimore County volunteer fire departments say they're in for a battle to survive.

For more than a century, volunteer firefighters in the southwest Baltimore County community of Violetville have been rushing to fight fires and help their neighbors.

Now, the volunteers are fighting to keep their doors open.

A report commissioned by the Baltimore County Volunteer Firemen's Association recommends closing volunteer stations in Violetville, Woodlawn and on Liberty Road in Randallstown, as well as merging several volunteer companies in other parts of the county.

"It's definitely been shattering to most of this department," said Charles Weber Jr., a third-generation volunteer firefighter who is president of the Violetville Volunteer Fire Department. "We're upset. We're ready to fight."

Weber said representatives of the three stations were summoned to a meeting with officers from the county association last week and told they were being recommended to closed.

"I was devastated, to say the least," he said.

The president of the county association, John W. McDowell, declined to provide The Sun with a copy of the report public, saying it was still under review.

But a summary of a presentation given privately to members of the Baltimore County Council on Tuesday shows a map with the three recommended closures and several proposed mergers, including: Lansdowne and English Consul; Middle River Fire, Middle River Ambulance and Bowley's Quarters Fire; Hereford Fire, Hereford EMS and Butler; Glyndon and Reisterstown; Arcadia and Boring; and Middleborough, Hyde Park and Rockaway Beach.

The presentation said the goal is to make the volunteer fire companies "more efficient and effective."

The presentation also recommends the county collect a fee for taking patients to the hospital in an ambulance. Many counties charge insurance companies for the service, but Baltimore County does not.

The report was prepared by VFIS, a Pennsylvania company that offers insurance and consulting services to emergency and fire organizations.

McDowell said the volunteer association's executive board plans to vote on the recommendations, followed by a vote by the entire association. Each volunteer company has one vote in the association.

McDowell said the process would likely take a few months.

Each volunteer fire company is an independent corporation, so it's not clear if the volunteer association has the legal authority to compel any of its members to close.

"We have a lot of questions how we get there once we decide what the path is, because they are independent companies," said McDowell, who also is president of the Arbutus Volunteer Fire Department.

Baltimore County Councilman Julian Jones, a Democrat whose west side district includes the Liberty Road and Woodlawn companies, said the volunteer association can't close stations. It's up to the county's fire chief to determine who is allowed to respond to emergency calls, he said.

Jones said the county has "no plans in the foreseeable future" to close any stations.

"I'm very supportive of the volunteers and I appreciate the work they do. I'll do what I can to help them survive," said Jones, whose full-time job is as a battalion chief for the Anne Arundel County Fire Department.

Baltimore County Fire Chief John J. Hohman has not yet seen the report or discussed it with the volunteer association, said Elise Armacost, a county fire department spokeswoman.

"If there were a recommendation to merge or close volunteer stations, there would be a discussion with the department of what changes would need to be made," Armacost said.

County Executive Kevin Kamenetz also has not been given a copy of the report, according to his spokesman and chief of staff, Don Mohler.

Baltimore County has a hybrid fire service, with 25 stations run by county-paid career firefighters and 33 stations run by volunteer fire companies. There also are two volunteer "rehabilitation" companies that offer support to firefighters, such as meals.

While the career firefighters and volunteer firefighters work side-by-side at emergency scenes, the volunteers are largely in charge of their own operations.

The county provides about $7 million per year to support volunteer stations, including incentives to companies that provide emergency medical care, as well as grants and subsidies for equipment and utilities, Armacost said.

At Violetville, members are ready for a fight, even as they question how the process will play out.

"We still obviously are going to fight to stay in existence, but we're not sure what the next step will be," Weber said.

Councilman Tom Quirk, whose district includes Violetville, declined to comment, saying he's still reviewing the report.

Tyrone Keys, public information officer for the Liberty Road Volunteer Fire Company, said members of his company take issue with several details in the report. The report said Randallstown is not a growing area, which Keys said that is refuted by U.S. Census data.

The report also faulted Liberty Road for not responding to all of the calls in its area, but Keys said the station's 25 active volunteers responded to more than 1,200 calls last year. He said no volunteer company responds to 100 percent of calls in its area.

"The most troubling aspect of it is the fact that we have a responsibility for 30,000 residents," Keys said. "If you take away our station, then the nearest stations — they're definitely going to do their best, but it will add time onto the response window. In this business, time is definitely of the essence."

Capt. Michael P. Kratochvil Jr. of the Woodlawn Volunteer Fire Company said in an email that his station's members were "shocked and saddened" to be put on the list for potential closure.

"We were completely unaware that this was even remotely possible … We did not anticipate that this study would recommend any closings," he wrote.

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