High Park Volunteer Fire Department suspended of its duties
JEANNETTE, Pa. (KDKA) — A local fire department has been suspended from its duties.
After being on probation since 2022, the High Park Volunteer Fire Department in Hempfield Township is no longer open or responding to calls after the township sent a notice of suspension letter this week.
KDKA-TV got a copy of that notice, where Hempfield Township said while the action is "deeply regrettable," it is necessary "due to High Park VFD's repeated non-compliance with the Service Agreement, foundational expectations outlined in Chapter 47-4, and the department's refusal to engage in formulating a necessary corrective action plan."
The department had been on probation since 2022, the township said, due to personnel issues. The township later gave the department an option to go under township management, merge with a neighboring station or dissolve.
"I believe it was Feb. 8, we received an email from them that said that they were no longer interested in fulfilling the obligation of the service agreement and providing fire service to Hempfield Township. So, our fire chief took action by suspending the station and signing those calls in that district to the other volunteer fire stations," said Aaron Siko, Hempfield Township manager.
Siko said High Park VFD stopped responding to calls on Oct. 21, 2023 and had missed 65 calls leading up to the suspension on Feb. 12.
"Whenever we have a situation where calls aren't being responded to, it's hard for us to continue to put resources towards that whenever we have 10 other stations that are doing that," Siko said.
Now, the Grapeville VFD, 2 miles away from High Park VFD, and Adamsburg VFD, located 3 miles away, will take over the calls.
Officials told KDKA-TV those departments had already been answering calls for High Park VFD for months and that the suspension would not affect response times to emergencies in the community.
"We have 10 stations. Those 10 stations continue to respond throughout our community and likewise, we have mutual aid agreements in neighboring municipalities," Siko said. "So, our community is still well protected for any kind of emergencies."
High Park VFD posted on Facebook about the suspension, blaming the township for the closure. Some reasons listed include the township allegedly breaking its service agreement, the township not buying the department new helmets for members and for the fire chief's "opinions."
The department said the suspension is not due to its response to emergency calls.
KDKA-TV reached out to High Park VFD for comment but has not heard back yet.
Moving forward, the township said High Park VFD has the option to put together a corrective action plan and meet with township supervisors to discuss becoming an active station again. If not, it will remain suspended and closed. The department has until March 1.
