BIG SPRING, TX — During yesterday’s special meeting of the Big Spring City Council, many Big Spring Firefighters, members of the community, and even the Mayor of Ackerly urged Council members to not make cuts to the fire department’s personnel and to not close Fire Station 2.
The ordinance on yesterday’s agenda would have decreased the number of sworn fire department personnel by 10 from 74 to 64 through attrition with no current positions being eliminated. It would also close the fire station at 18th and Main, and redistribute the personnel and equipment to the other 4 stations.
During discussion on the topic, it was noted that according to the National Fire Protection Association’s NFPA 1710, four firefighters are recommended on a truck to fight a house fire on site. Chanley Delk, President of the Big Spring Professional Firefighters, told KBest News that the department wants to keep a minimum daily staffing of 20. This would allow them to have 3 firefighters on each truck, and ensure the right amount of protection for the citizens. Delk said this allows them to be able to have EMS workers and extinguish fires with an appropriate amount of workers.
He went on to say that closing Fire Station 2 at 18th and Main St. would further eliminate the minimum staffing and cut an additional 20 percent of staff from the Fire Department.
“That’s just too dangerous of a cut to make, so we’re asking the city council and mayor to, please, reconsider. Vote for safety. Vote for Big Spring,” said Delk.
City staff advised that the 10 positions in question were originally added to BSFD thanks to the funding from the SAFER grant. Now those funds are no longer available and the city would face a budget deficit if they were to fund those positions.
Delk told KBest News that the fire department has had a tremendous show of support from the community, with over 400 emails being sent to the City Manager and City Council members.
Ultimately, the item was tabled until the June 13, 2023 City Council meeting.
(Featured photo: Chanley Delk)
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