By Mari A. Schaefer
The Philadelphia Inquirer
MIFFLIN COUNTY, Pa. — There is probably nothing more traditional than watching big fire trucks parade down main streets during local celebrations throughout the year.
But the rising cost of fuel has forced some volunteer departments in Pennsylvania — already stretched thin with fewer volunteers, more calls, and increased training time — to keep their trucks in the garage on such occasions.
“We have limited parades this year,” said Ed Mann, treasurer of the East Derry Volunteer Fire Company in Mifflin County and the state’s fire commissioner. The expense of driving a truck 70 miles back and forth to a parade was too much. “We only have a finite amount of money to work with. We are finding ways to limit costs.”
As of Saturday, AAA’s national average for regular gasoline was $3.60 a gallon; a year earlier, it was $2.68. Diesel, which most rescue vehicles use, was $2.96 a gallon in 2010; the average now is $3.88.
Particularly hard hit are the volunteer fire police, who drive their own vehicles to emergencies. Often the first ones on a scene and the last to leave, they can sit idling for hours. Fire police do not usually receive any regular reimbursement.
Thomas Adams, 59, a volunteer with Reliance Hook and Ladder in Upper Chichester, said he spent about $200 a month out of his pocket on emergency calls or training. He has not been to a movie “in years,” and has cut back on going out for dinner with his wife.
Still, Adams said, he would never think of quitting. “I’ve been a firefighter since I was 16.”
The fuel cost the East Derry company $1,245 for all of 2010, Mann said. So far this year, the department has spent $1,476.
A big part of the increase has been due to call volume, which went from 57 emergencies in 2010 to 96 this year.
For the Osceola Fire Department in rural Tioga County, near the New York border, the emphasis is on “chronic fund-raising,” said Ryane G. Rumsey, fire company secretary. The all-volunteer company has about 33 members to serve 5,000 residents in 36 square miles. The 70 emergency calls last year cost about $6,000 in fuel, money not directly covered by the township.
“Police get funding from all different revenue streams we don’t have access to,” Rumsey said. “I have to do a chicken barbecue to put gas in the tank.”
The Uwchlan Ambulance Corps in Chester County takes about 3,000 calls a year. The nonprofit organization receives no direct tax money but can buy fuel at a lower rate through the township.
Even so, treasurer Judy Kaplan expects to spend $8,300 on fuel for the next year if call volume holds steady.
To help cover costs, she said, the corps will seek grants for other expenses, trim costs, and hope for additional volunteers.
The ambulance corps has a mix of paid and volunteer staff on the ambulances.
Norristown Fire Department, one of the busiest in Montgomery County, also has the cost of fuel covered by the municipality. The combination volunteer and professional company takes about 1,300 calls a year.
Chief Tom O’Donnell, 40, called the fuel expense “ungodly.”
There is no way an all-volunteer company could pay for fuel, maintain equipment, and buy new trucks and insurance, he said. “There has to be a community element that funds part or all of the expenses.”
The company does its part to keep costs low, O’Donnell said. It took two years to evaluate what equipment was needed before three vehicles and a water-rescue Jet Ski were sold to cut back on maintenance costs.
For the last three years, Yeadon Fire Chief Michael Melazzo set aside more for fuel, but it was still not enough. He blamed a combination of higher fuel costs and more emergency runs. His department has fuel supplied from the borough, but it must submit a budget.
With costs more of a moving target than a sure thing, Melazzo said he would try to approximate for next year’s budget as best he could and cut back in other areas.
There is one cut Melazzo cannot make.
“I can’t just not take fire trucks out of the firehouse,” he said. “You have to have them.
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