…still no news coverage from PNJ.
Friday’s follow-up:
Firefighter Audit Follow-up
An Escambia Volunteer Fire Chief says he wants taxpayers to know what it would cost them to have a fully paid department.
It’s an update to a story we broke here on Channel Three News yesterday.
Escambia County’s Professional Firefighters Union made several allegations against volunteer fire departments.
Among those was the fact that the majority of volunteers don’t have the proper training.
Ferry Pass Chief Robbie Whitfield admits that less than half of the county’s volunteers are state certified…..But says a fully paid force would raise the cost of fire service considerably.
Robbie Whitfield/Ferry Pass Fire Chief: “Ballpark….upwards around…..for a residential home….350 dollars. And there are residents right now in Escambia County that can’t afford the 75 dollars.”
That’s 75 dollars per year…..Which is the current cost for residential fire service.
The Professional Firefighters Union also alleges some volunteer departments are making illegal payments to its firefighters.
Whitfield says he’s convinced the union is trying to squeeze out the volunteers.
Neither the union…. nor the county administrator will comment on the issue…..But the clerk’s office has begun an audit of the volunteer payment system.
Last Updated: Friday, April 6 2007, 09:44 PM