Belmont Fire Station's temporary closure raises concerns from the public and the Firefighters' Union

The Liberty Township Fire Department temporarily closes it's Belmont station when there isn't enough staff for both stations. 

The public found out through a Facebook post by the Liberty Fire Union that was shared last week by a Firefighter. Both the union and public are concerned the Township Trustees and Fire Department didn't announce the station was closed.

According to Devon Stanley, Liberty Township Trustee, the fire station has closed multiple times in the past five years. He also mentioned that at one point, the Belmont location was closed for years.

The Liberty Township fire union page, IAFF Local 2075, originally posted about Belmont's temporary closure last week. It was then reposted by a firefighter. 

The trustee felt the information did not need to be posted, since it isn't something that puts the public's safety at risk. If there was a necessary announcement, he feels the public should find out from the city, not on Facebook. 

When the Belmont fire Station is closed, the staff will work with others at the Fire Station at Logan Avenue.  Ronnie Simone,  President of IAFF Local 2075, worries this will affect response times, and could put anyone pulling into the fire station with an emergency in danger. 

The decision by the trustees to no longer staff a fifth firefighter overtime also concerns Simone. He feels it could bring more closures in the future. 

The call volume has went up significantly in the past few years. The Liberty Fire Department is running around 3,600 calls a year, and has been assisting neighbor cities on calls. 

The Liberty Township Fire Department is actively trying to hire more staff by increasing wages, opening its contract to lateral hiring, and looking at other fire departments for firefighters. The department is losing two firefighters in the next couple weeks, and are looking to hire both firefighters and paramedics.

Stanley says the Liberty Township Fire Department actively trying to hire more staff by increasing wages, opening its contract to lateral hiring, and looking at other fire departments for firefighters. 

There are no plans to permanently close the Belmont Fire Station.