A Nova Scotia volunteer fire department says it is taking legal action after members were blindsided by a decision to close it down.
Earlier this week, the Greenwich Volunteer Fire Department in Kings County, N.S., said its chief found out that on April 1, the Wolfville and Greenwich fire districts will be combined into one district, which will be served by the Wolfville Volunteer Fire Department.
Chief of the station Jason Ripley said he felt betrayed by the decision. On Friday afternoon, he announced on Facebook that the station has retained a lawyer.
“Our department is committed to doing everything we can to reverse the unjust decision to close this fire department and ensure the residents of our fire district continue to receive the high quality service our department provides,” Ripley said in the post.
Ripley said the station has hired representation from Halifax-based law firm Cox & Palmer, and the Municipality of the County of Kings and the Greenwich Fire Commission were both served notice earlier on Friday.
The statement said the volunteer department intends to challenge the municipality and the commission’s decision to close it down, and that it will also be “seeking an order to stay the decision to close their doors on an urgent basis.”
Ripley said in the statement that the outpour of support from the community has been overwhelming.
“We hope that local politicians are taking notice and will remember that they were democratically elected to their positions to follow the will of the people,” the statement read.
The Greenwich Volunteer Fire Department was founded in 1933 and is entirely volunteer-run. The department’s fire district is about 88 square kilometres, with about 2,000 residents, according to Ripley. It responds to approximately 100 calls per year.
The chief first spoke out about his disappointment on Wednesday morning, the day after finding out Kings County Council voted on the decision to close the department.
“I really feel betrayed about the process, how it’s all played out,” Ripley told Global News on Thursday.
The councils for the municipality and the Town of Wolfville jointly formalized an agreement with the Greenwich Fire Commission — which is separate from the department — to merge the Wolfville and Greenwich fire districts, following a study of fire services in the region.
The review, conducted by consulting firm Emergency Management and Training Inc., recommended that the two districts combine “to address service duplications relating to overlaps in coverage.”
The Greenwich Fire Department participated in the study, but the department didn’t know of the study’s findings until after it quietly went to council Tuesday night, where it was not on the agenda.
“All along, we were willing to consider amalgamation, but of course, an amalgamation is a partnership with two entities, not one being closed and the other taking over.”
Peter Muttart, the mayor of the Municipality of the County of Kings, told Global News on Thursday there will not be an impact on fire service in the area.
“We hope that each of the firefighters will find a new home within either the Wolfville department, which will be taking the fire district under its wing, or within other departments that some of them live much closer to,” Muttart said.
“All we’re talking about is, essentially, a building.”
Ripley said the Greenwich department is more than just a building: it acts as a community meeting space and comfort centre during emergencies.
On Saturday morning, Ripley took to Facebook with an open letter to the Greenwich Fire Commission.
In the letter, Ripley alleges there was no public consultation in the decision made, and that the commission acted outside of its jurisdiction.
“I have heard from an overwhelming number of Greenwich residents who are not in favour of your decision,” he wrote.
Ripley called on the commission to put the issue to a public vote.
“Should the vote fail, I expect you will do the right thing and resign your positions and allow ratepayers who are more cognizant of the communities’ best interests to take over the operation of the fire commission and take decisions on what the future of fire protection will look like.”
The department has planned a public meeting on Sunday evening at 7 p.m. at the Greenwich station, which the commission was also invited to in the open letter.
— with files from Alex Cooke
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