FELTON, YORK COUNTY -
Volunteer fire police donate their time, their vehicles and their gasoline all to help keep firefighters and the public safe. Now some southern York County fire chiefs say Met-Ed is taking advantage of their fire police to do a job they say the power company should be paying for.
On Christmas day, a driver hit an electrical pole along Felton Road in Windsor Township. Felton volunteer fire police closed the road while Met-Ed crews got to work, but Met-Ed flaggers never arrived to direct traffic.
Felton Fire Chief Scott Gingrich says this has been an ongoing problem for years. "What's supposed to happen is once we get the danger out of the way with the vehicle, Met-Ed comes, does their job, brings their flaggers, we go home," Gingrich explained. "It doesn't happen," he said.
Gingrich, Eureka Volunteer Fire Company Chief Ira Walker, Jr., and other volunteer fire company chiefs from across southern York County want Met-Ed to either provide flaggers or give fire departments some form of compensation for their services.
"Unfortunately, they use us," Gingrich said. "They know it's a free service and they use us, and they're abusing it."
"It just gets so frustrating for the fire chiefs and fire police," Walker said. His fire company responded to a call for downed power lines in Cross Roads on Sunday afternoon. High winds blew the roof off a barn. As the roof sailed through the air, it snagged nearby power lines, bringing them down on a road.
Eureka volunteer fire police closed the road so Met-Ed crews could fix the lines.
"Typically they're the first to respond and the last to leave," Walker said of his fire police.
Walker and Gingrich say they are not satisfied with meetings they have had with Met-Ed officials to address the situation.
"We, on our end, feel it's something so simple that you should be able to make a compromise, yet we can't get the cooperation on the other end," Walker said.
"They tell you what you want to hear," Gingrich said. "But it doesn't seem like it ever pans out. It might work out for a little while, but it never lasts."
Met-Ed external affairs manager Terry Gilman responded to FOX43's request for comment in an email.
"Met-Ed has operational procedures in place to respond to emergency situations," Gilman wrote. "We will continue to work with our communities and emergency response personnel in the best interest of public health and safety. Met-Ed is willing to meet any time with our community emergency organizations to discuss our response to emergencies."
The fire chiefs said they have been in contact with State Rep. Stan Saylor (R-94th Dist.) to see if he can help resolve the dispute.
On Christmas day, a driver hit an electrical pole along Felton Road in Windsor Township. Felton volunteer fire police closed the road while Met-Ed crews got to work, but Met-Ed flaggers never arrived to direct traffic.
Felton Fire Chief Scott Gingrich says this has been an ongoing problem for years. "What's supposed to happen is once we get the danger out of the way with the vehicle, Met-Ed comes, does their job, brings their flaggers, we go home," Gingrich explained. "It doesn't happen," he said.
Gingrich, Eureka Volunteer Fire Company Chief Ira Walker, Jr., and other volunteer fire company chiefs from across southern York County want Met-Ed to either provide flaggers or give fire departments some form of compensation for their services.
"Unfortunately, they use us," Gingrich said. "They know it's a free service and they use us, and they're abusing it."
"It just gets so frustrating for the fire chiefs and fire police," Walker said. His fire company responded to a call for downed power lines in Cross Roads on Sunday afternoon. High winds blew the roof off a barn. As the roof sailed through the air, it snagged nearby power lines, bringing them down on a road.
Eureka volunteer fire police closed the road so Met-Ed crews could fix the lines.
"Typically they're the first to respond and the last to leave," Walker said of his fire police.
Walker and Gingrich say they are not satisfied with meetings they have had with Met-Ed officials to address the situation.
"We, on our end, feel it's something so simple that you should be able to make a compromise, yet we can't get the cooperation on the other end," Walker said.
"They tell you what you want to hear," Gingrich said. "But it doesn't seem like it ever pans out. It might work out for a little while, but it never lasts."
Met-Ed external affairs manager Terry Gilman responded to FOX43's request for comment in an email.
"Met-Ed has operational procedures in place to respond to emergency situations," Gilman wrote. "We will continue to work with our communities and emergency response personnel in the best interest of public health and safety. Met-Ed is willing to meet any time with our community emergency organizations to discuss our response to emergencies."
The fire chiefs said they have been in contact with State Rep. Stan Saylor (R-94th Dist.) to see if he can help resolve the dispute.
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