Harvey, IL, Closes Two Fire Station as More Firefighters are Laid Off
Another round of layoffs in the city of Harvey brings more reductions to the fire department and other city agencies.
Last week, the city laid off eight employees, including four firefighters. The other cuts came from the the public works and police departments, according to CBS Chicago.
The department lost 20 firefighters in October when the city laid off 40 percent of it's workforce because the city faces a debt of nearly $140 million.
On the city's Financial Crisis website, it shows most city offices are open for three hours daily.
Under the fire department, it shows that only Station 1 is still open. while Stations 2 and 3 are listed as "temporarily closed due to staffing adjustments."
The page states, "Emergency services will continue to operate without interruption," but firefighters say they are concenred. And the citzens are concerned about their safety.
"The citizens are worried...this could have potentially dire circumstances for the citizens,” Keith Freeman, board secretary of Harvey Firemen Local 471 told WGNTV.com. “Having man power as low as it is now, significantly below the agreement between the union and city, means it’s much more dangerous for the men who do the job and obviously more dangerous for the citizens. There’s a lot of concern.”
About the Author
Peter Matthews
Editor-in-Chief/Conference Director
Peter Matthews is the conference director and editor-in-chief of Firehouse. He has worked at Firehouse since 1999, serving in various roles on both Firehouse Magazine and Firehouse.com staffs. He completed an internship with the Rochester, NY, Fire Department and served with fire departments in Rush, NY, and Laurel, MD, and was a lieutenant with the Glenwood Fire Company in Glenwood Landing, NY. Matthews served as photographer for the St. Paul, MN, Fire Department and currently is a photographer for the Fort Worth, TX, Fire Department.