PA City Privatizes Fire Department Due to Excessive Overtime

The City of Carbondale, Pennsylvania’s City Council voted to privatize its paid firefighting force by a 5-2 vote late last week. The Carbondale Fire Department is a combination department operating with a small number of paid firefighters augmented by volunteers. According to ABC News Channel 16 [WNEP] the department’s paid staff has dwindled to only four firefighters. As a result, firefighters are frequently working overtime. Something that the city council says is unsustainable. The city is contracting with a local non-profit ambulance service to provide personnel to staff the fire stations and respond with fire apparatus in the event of an emergency. Here is more on the story from ABC News Channel 16 [WNEP].