July 22, 2008
Fighting fires
In 1736--a good forty years before he helped draft the Declaration of Independence--Benjamin Franklin was putting out fires in Philadelphia, where he founded an all-volunteer fire company. Today Americans are still debating the best way to fight fires.
The Olean Times Herald and the Binghamton Press & Sun Bulletin have advanced that debate with recent stories of statewide interest.
In Olean (Cattaraugus County) and Johnson City (Broome County), local officials wonder if their municipalities (each has a population around 15,000 ) could save money by adding volunteers or part-time firefighters to their all-paid forces.
The Olean newspaper reports on four municipalities--North Tonawanda, Corning, Salamanca and Canandaigua--that supplement their forces of paid firefighters with volunteers and/or paid part-time employees.
In its latest saga of the Johnson City firefighters contract, the Press & Sun-Bulletin examines firefighting costs elsewhere in the state. It found:
Even before signing a five-year contract that gave its firefighters a 41 percent raise, Johnson City already was spending more on fire protection than all but two villages in New York. Only Scarsdale and Garden City, both wealthy downstate communities that are larger in population and square mileage, spend more than JC.
Last year, Johnson City firefighters responded to 2,016 calls--5.5 per day. "Most were medical calls, rescues and non-emergency situations....Fifty-eight -- five per month -- were actual fires," the newspaper reports.
For Public Payroll Watch's coverage of the Johnson City firefighters contract, see here and here.
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