BURLINGTON, WI—The Burlington Rescue Squad will dissolve at the end of the year due to difficulties keeping up with increased call volume and a decline in volunteerism, Mayor Jeannie Hefty has announced.
The dissolution will leave the City of Burlington Fire Department to pick up rescue services for city residents. Town of Burlington officials, meanwhile, are negotiating with the city regarding a likely contract for EMS service after Dec. 31.
Both municipalities have their own fire departments. The city’s department will hire three additional full-time and two additional part-time fire/EMS staff, City Administrator Carina Walters wrote in an email. She did not say the anticipated cost of those additions.
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With the additions, the city Fire Department’s paid staff would be comprised of: five full-time and 12 part-time fire/EMS staff and one part-time administrative assistant, Walters wrote. The Fire Department also has volunteer firefighters,
The town could then feasibly contract with the city Fire Department for rescue service, which appears to be the most likely outcome. Hefty wrote that the city “has run the numbers to meet this challenge and it falls within our operating means.”
“The Town Board is discussing all options right now, and working with the city is definitely on the table,” Town Administrator Brian Graziano said. “I am optimistic that we will have some sort of agreement sooner rather than later.”
Future service
Because there is not yet a solidified contract, Graziano and Walters said they do not know how much the town would pay for the service.
Walters wrote she is “confident there will be a mutually beneficial contract between the City and Town.”
About 20 members are currently on the rescue squad roster, rescue squad Chief Jeff Koenen said. Some will likely volunteer with the city’s Fire Department or other area volunteer departments, he said.
The volunteer squad, founded in 1946, has been responding to 1,300 to 1,600 calls annually over the past few years, Hefty wrote. The squad was founded as a nonprofit by the Burlington Rotary Club, which continued to oversee it. The squad had at one time also covered parts of Dover, Kenosha County and Walworth County.
Hefty said the Rescue Squad Board of Directors decided Saturday that continuing the service is no longer practical. In April, the squad and city Fire Department had jointly announced they were entering negotiations to merge.
The squad had considered lightening its load by solely responding to the town, but it was determined last week that it was not feasible, Koenen said.
“As far as Burlington Rescue Squad is concerned, we needed to be dissolved,” he said.
Mayor a longtime EMT
Hefty retired from the Rescue Squad last August after serving actively with the squad for 20 years with the squad.
“This story of 73 years will not go untold,” Hefty wrote in her announcement. “I want the whole State of Wisconsin to understand this sacrifice and how the dynamics of changing times affected the existence of Burlington Rescue Squad.”
Some of the rescue squad’s equipment will be donated to the city and town fire departments, while the rest will be donated to departments in need throughout the state, Koenen said.
The general membership of the rescue squad was to be informed of the decision Wednesday night, Hefty said. But until 11:59 p.m. on Dec. 31, rescue squad volunteers will continue to respond to calls.
“My members gave 100% to this city they gave 100% to the town,” Koenen said. “It’s going to be difficult emotionally, but we’ll make it through.”
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