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Fla. county eliminates volunteer dept.

Officials voted unanimously to eliminate volunteers’ ability to man stations autonomously

By Sherri Lonon
Lutz Patch

HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. — The Lutz Volunteer Fire Department as residents know it will soon to be a thing of the past.

The Hillsborough County Commission voted unanimously today, Nov. 15, to adopt a transition plan that changes the role of volunteer firefighters and eliminates their ability to man stations autonomously.

The plan creates a Reserve Responder Program that will utilize current and incoming volunteers. It also adds 78 new career firefighting positions to the county’s roster. Those positions will be funded out of a $5.24 million budget request that was also approved today. The money will be “drawn down” from that multi-million-dollar pool as positions are filled.

Full story: Lutz Volunteer Fire Department Gets Replaced by County