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Fire board, chief speak to Clinton Township VFD capacity
VAN BIBBER LAKE — In the wake of the recent fire in which an elderly woman was killed, residents have expressed concerns about fire protection in Van Bibber Lake.
These concerns were met by the Walnut Creek Fire Protection District’s board, as well as Fire Chief Tony Camp, at a special meeting Thursday evening. The overarching theme was the Clinton Township Volunteer Fire Department continuing to establish itself, despite challenges with personnel.
As to the fire on April 19 in which Carol Haney, 71, was found, Camp was in Ohio when he received the initial dispatch. Knowing personnel were at work, he requested for Roachdale Fire Chief Mike Poole and the Madison Township Volunteer Fire Department to be toned. The Greencastle Fire Department and multiple volunteers responded.
“I did what I could from 200 miles away,” Camp said. “I was brought in to protect it (the area), but I can’t protect it 24/7. I have to work to support my family, as most of you do, too.”
Being a member of the Bainbridge Volunteer Fire Department, which comprises the district with Clinton Township VFD, Camp was tapped as the latter’s chief last August. His appointment came after the district voided its previous contract with the department after the resignation of Jack Giles as chief.
Relating that he has taken “a lot of hits” about his leadership, Camp said he understood why the department’s former chiefs left. They did so, he said, because they, “weren’t going to put up with it.”
“You guys can sit here and blame the fire department for her (Haney’s) death all you want, but I can guarantee you it’s not the department’s fault,” Camp said. “We do not get paid to sit here on station and cover it every hour of the day.”
Camp noted that three members have completed Firefighter 1 and 2 and emergency medical response (EMR), while two are currently in the former. The remaining two, he said, will take the EMR class, but came on the department after Firefighter 1 and 2 began locally.
As to new members coming on, Camp said they are taught how to operate the department’s equipment and apparatuses within a week. If they cannot make Firefighter 1 and 2, a 30-hour training would be held in-station.
Camp also touched on a new paid standby system as an incentive, in which they would come to the station for eight hours a month. However, they would also have to make four trainings and two meetings in a three-month period.
“I can’t put my crew at risk, because they’re saving somebody they thought could be on the fire department,” Camp said as to testing each member’s agility. He also related this to determining whether personnel can make entry into a compromised structure.
“I’ve heard ever since 1991 that volunteerism is dead,” Board Secretary Richard Cope said as a former member of the department. “Help the department. Quit beating up on everything, and maybe we can bring some of that volunteerism back. That’s when we get this department healthy.”
Apart from the department’s status, Camp and the board also addressed using fire pits in Van Bibber Lake. He first related that the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM), at first, dictated that no open burning should be allowed.
The community was characterized as a “candle waiting to catch fire” because of how close homes are together. However, IDEM, as well as the Indiana State Fire Marshal’s Office, indicated that they would back regulations set by Camp and the property owners association.
As such, Camp and the POA recently met and came up with new rules. They include fire pits needing to be above ground with a five-foot rock diameter and be at least 10 feet from a structure. Violations would incur a $250 fine from the department.
“If you guys don’t like these rules that the POA and I have come up with, then we’ll go back to IDEM’s rules,” Camp said. “This is not me being on a power trip or having an ego.”
“None of these eight rules are anything that is dramatic,” POA president Brian Miller said for his part. “If we’re all smart and abide by these rules, the community’s good as gold. They (IDEM) are willing stand beside this fire department, your POA, with these rules.”
With 20 minutes alloted for public comments, Camp and the board were met about issues on the department’s membership and ability to respond. It was led by a relative of Haney’s calling it, “a poor excuse for a fire department, period.”
“Had we had access to an apparatus, we probably could’ve save her (Haney) or saved a lot of stuff,” said Lydia Chubb, who was a captain before the department was re-organized.
Chubb’s comment led into former members allegedly being shut out of serving on the new department by leadership. Cope provided that anyone could apply if they can show credentials.
Providing that he had applied, former fire chief Kenneth Stone queried whether Camp or the board decided on him and other potential recruits. The district’s attorney Charles Hostetter, however, cautioned with personnel issues needing addressed in executive sessions.
“We had 100-percent response time,” former assistant chief Douglas Chubb provided about the department’s previous membership. “Out of 100 runs, we made 100 runs, and we went from that to maybe 25 percent.”
Camp provided that any runs that have been missed have been during the daytime, but that none at night have been since he took over. He also clarified that box alarms are how mutual aid responses are pre-planned. As such, he said he had consulted with his peers on a new one for the area.
Camp added that Clinton Township was not included on box alarms prior to his appointment. Since then, he said, he has worked on “mending fences” with the different departments.
“They’re willing now to actually work with us,” Camp said. “Regardless of what people are saying out there and what has happened, we’re working in the right direction.”
Board President Rusty Burch and Board Vice President Mike Mahoy were also in attendance at the meeting.