Active and retired Baltimore City firefighters, as well as residents and community leaders, protested possible budget cuts that could see the shuttering two fire companies.
Demonstrations were held Wednesday at fire stations in the northeast Baltimore and Pigtown neighborhoods. Those firehouses are the locations for Engine 4 and Engine 55, respectively, two units that have been proposed to be closed.
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"Together, we stood in solidarity against the proposed closure of Engine 4 in Northeast and Engine 55 in Pigtown," Baltimore City's firefighters union stated on its Facebook page.
The proposed closings would only affect the fire companies; the stations would remain open. Earlier this month, the Baltimore City Council expressed concern over eliminating the two companies, as well as other potential cuts to the department's roughly $300 million spending plan.
A department spokesperson told WBAL-TV that if the fire companies are disbanded, those firefighters would be deployed to other parts of the city. The mayor's office did not have a comment about the proposal.
Last week, the firefighters union urged the public to contact Mayor Jack Young in an effort to block the potential moves.
