By Cody Neff
The Register-Herald
BECKLEY, W.Va — The Greenbrier Valley Rural Volunteer Fire Department in Talcott has closed indefinitely.
A meeting took place Saturday to talk about what can be done to restore fire services to the area. Tensions ran high and people in the community demanded answers.
Officials from the community, county and state all offered answers as best as they could, but the ultimate responsibility falls on the heads of the community, they said.
“We have no knowledge as to why the department was closed,” County Commission President Jack David Woodrum said. “The community still has fire protection, though. They don’t have a station in the community, but they have protection through other fire stations.”
As the community asked questions, more questions rose out of the confusion.
Meeting officials asked where the bylaws for the fire station were. Those bylaws are like the Constitution of the station, they said.
“Last I heard, they were put into effect in 2007,” one man said.
It turns out that there were three trustees on the board for the fire station, the man said. All three trustees resigned around 2007 and the fire department ran without a figurative head.
Those bylaws were never signed, but they were still followed, meeting officials said.
No one was sure where the new trustees were, or if there were any.
No one knew where the new bylaws were, or if they even exist.
People were told that they couldn’t raise money under the name of the fire station, but they could raise money for the fire station.
In other words, they can’t open the doors of the station and have a hot dog sale in the building, but if someone wanted to put together a “friends of the fire station” fund and donate to the station, they can.
As questions were answered and tensions died down, attorney David Ziegler put down two lists for the community to sign.
One list was of the people in the area who have level one or level two fire training. The other list was full of people who wanted to help out with the department in any way that they could.
“What happens next is up to the former trustees to decide,” Ziegler said. “They need to take the lead on this. I know two of the three former trustees and they’re very community-minded people. They’ll surely help.”
Once the trustees are back together, they’ll put together a plan to present to the West Virginia state fire marshal and State Fire Commission.
When the minimal requirements for a fire department are met, a department in the same location, but under a new name, will open.
Without a fire department in the community, home insurance premiums could skyrocket. Not everyone’s insurance will, but some will, the county commission president said.
“My mother’s insurance rose by about $10 within a few days of the closure,” Jack David Woodrum said. “That’s a best-case scenario. I’m sure it could be more for other people.”
The worst-case scenario is that the community loses all home insurance.
“We’re working together to solve the problem, though,” Woodrum said. “We’re going to get this taken care of as soon as possible.”
If the community pulls together right now and starts working, it could be eight months to a year before Talcott has a fire station again, Woodrum said.
Copyright 2016 The Register-Herald