Garden City is one of the numerous volunteer fire departments on Long Island.
Until recently, it also employed twelve full time firefighters at one of its three fire stations, so that one first due appliance could be turned out more rapidly than waiting for volunteers.
Now it is entirely staffed by unpaid volunteers, as the cost of employing full-time paid personnel did not actually do much for response times, except if the incident was very close to that one fire station. The available duty shift was only ever three or four - too few to initiate an interior attack on a structure fire in any case. The town agreed to pay a total of over $1.1 million severance.
This town of 23, 000 population has around fifty volunteers, operating three pumpers and two aerial trucks as well as the Rescue pictured here.
In common with many other volunteer departments, many respond to incidents directly in their own vehicles, while others go to one of the three stations to bring apparatus to the scene.
Until recently, it also employed twelve full time firefighters at one of its three fire stations, so that one first due appliance could be turned out more rapidly than waiting for volunteers.
Now it is entirely staffed by unpaid volunteers, as the cost of employing full-time paid personnel did not actually do much for response times, except if the incident was very close to that one fire station. The available duty shift was only ever three or four - too few to initiate an interior attack on a structure fire in any case. The town agreed to pay a total of over $1.1 million severance.
This town of 23, 000 population has around fifty volunteers, operating three pumpers and two aerial trucks as well as the Rescue pictured here.
In common with many other volunteer departments, many respond to incidents directly in their own vehicles, while others go to one of the three stations to bring apparatus to the scene.
Added by Rob Johnson on 19 April 2019.