Fire Response Times Discussed in Monroe Township, OH

Township officials are considering contracting Cairo-Monroe firefighters to provide service to a portion of the area.

By Craig Kelly

Source The Lima News, Ohio (TNS)

Jan. 27, 2026

2 min read

MONROE TOWNSHIP — A proposal that could save Monroe Township nearly $5,000 per year has led to concerns over fire response times in the Rockport area, leading to a discussion Monday at the township’s board of trustees meeting.

The township currently has an agreement with Richland Township to provide firefighting services for a portion of the township, a contract that pays Richland Township more than $4,700 every year.

“What we were looking at was saving money for the taxpayers,” trustee Mark Diller said. “We’ve got the manpower to do it. But that’s what got the ball rolling.”

The proposal was that the primary responder to any calls in that area would instead be the Cairo-Monroe Township Fire Department, with Richland Township and other area fire departments still being available for mutual aid when needed. However, concerns were raised that this change could result in a longer wait time for residents in the Rockford area, located approximately four miles northwest of Beaverdam but approximately seven miles northeast of Cairo.

The discussion ranged from the potential increased severity of a fire left to burn for additional time and even how a delayed response could affect home insurance rates for homeowners in the area. Questions were also raised as to how much of a delay, if any, that change would cause for response times for the volunteer fire departments.

“The response times could maybe be the same, or maybe it is one or two minutes longer,” trustee Jon Basinger said.

As word of this potential change got out into the broader community, trustees started fielding calls as concerns grew that this could affect other response times from area fire departments, concerns that Diller dismissed as being simply a product of the “rumor mill.”

“I had people from ( Columbus) Grove call me about, ‘Hey, you’re doing away with us,’” he said. “What’s going on? Where’d you get this from? Well, it was all word of mouth.”

The plan going forward, trustees said, is to set up a meeting with the Richland Township trustees, the members of whom were in attendance at Monday’s meeting, to further discuss the proposal, including taking another look at the contract currently in place to consider possible revisions.

“It’s nothing against a neighboring fire department,” Cairo-Monroe Township Fire Chief Wes Buettner said. “If I need help, guess what? If they’re closer, I’m calling them first.”