BLANDFORD – The temperature in the Blandford Elementary School gymnasium seemed to rise several hundred degrees Friday evening, as residents of the small Hampden County hilltown packed the gym to express their displeasure with the town's three-member Board of Selectmen over it's weeklong standoff with Blandford's Fire Department.
Following the resignation of almost the entire department earlier in the week, the room was packed with those who hoped to witness the Board of Selectmen reach a resolution with the town’s seven volunteer and two probationary firefighters, several of whom were present and voiced their opinions throughout the evening.
Following the resignation of Fire Chief Bob DeCoteau on Tuesday evening, a result of a dispute with the selectboard over hirings and firings, the town’s volunteer firefighters announced their resignations, as well, setting in motion the selectmen's plan to utilize nearby fire departments and emergency personnel from neighboring communities.
The reality of slower response times from emergency personnel based in Otis or Russell was simply not going to cut it for those assembled Friday evening, and they voiced their concerns to the selectmen.
“Mutual aid is not a viable option, and I think these guys deserve a round of applause,” said Steve Hart, a former Blandford volunteer who served 24 years on the Fire Department, and whose statement was met with thunderous cheers from the crowd of over 100 residents. “A 25 minute response time isn’t good for a heart attack and it isn’t good for a three alarm housefire either.”
“I couldn’t agree more,” said Selectman Adam Dolby, himself a probationary volunteer firefighter and the lone member of the department not to resign. He went on to say that he had been in talks with the firemen about “reconciling” and returning the department to its “former glory.”
When questioned by Hart about whether the evening’s resolution would be to continue with two or three members until more could be brought on, Board Chairman Mick Brennan responded bluntly, “What are our options? Our force has resigned.”
Brennan would go on to say that a major issue between the department and the selectmen was the requirement of Criminal Offender Record Information (CORI) checks for all town employees who come in contact with seniors and children, including volunteers on the Fire Department.
“We’re required by law to have these (CORI checks)… The Fire Department didn’t submit them,” Brennan told the assembly. “And as we pushed them to hurry up, now they’re saying we can’t hire and fire people.”
“The last thing we want to do is hire and fire people,” he continued. “What the hell do I know about it?”
Brennan would then go on to cite state law Chapter 48 Section 42 and the “Strong Chief Statute”, which deals with the authority of a fire chief, including decisions regarding the training, hiring and firing of firefighters.
When asked by members of the crowd if he would consider asking the firemen to return, Brennan stayed firmly planted.
“Who decided we had a controversy..? Wasn’t us,” Brennan said. “And how it led to the whole department resigning, I don’t know. But I’m not going to chase people around and kiss rings.”
The issues over CORI checks and hiring/firing procedures fell by the wayside when stacked against the crowd’s biggest concern: safety.
“Why is hiring and firing such a big issue? We should be begging these guys to come back,” said Sarah Webster, a Blandford resident.
Bill White, another town resident, took the concern even further.
“Everyone is hoping that there isn’t a fire, a heart attack or a choking victim,” he said.
Board Clerk Bill Levakis remained quiet throughout the evening despite pressure to speak from the crowd, but would eventually speak up to express his displeasure with the resignations of the firefighters.
“I am disgusted with the Fire Department,” he said. “I think it’s illegal (what they’ve done). They’re criminals for walking out on the town. The Fire Department walked out and we have secured the town as best we can.”
When it seemed that the standoff would last well into the night, Fire Department Captain Tom Piper spoke on behalf of his volunteers.
“We’re a very small unit. We need to trust everyone who is on that unit,” he said. “We will not accept someone who we do not know and trust as our chief. We have seven volunteers and two probationary members. We rely on each other, and the chief has to be approved by us in our hearts before we can work for him.”
Piper then suggested that Brian Care, a firefighter who has been with the department almost 10 years in two stints, become the interim chief.
It was at that point that Dolby made a motion to approve Care for the position.
“It is a mistake to make that appointment in haste, but it is a greater mistake to leave the town without a fire department,” he said.
After the motion was seconded, Care approached the selectmen’s table to accept the position, effectively ending the turmoil that has engulfed Blandford’s town government for the past week.
After the meeting, there were many more smiles present in the gymnasium than earlier that evening.
“It’s an excellent idea,” Bob DeCoteau said following Care’s appointment. “I’m glad to see the guys back on the job. According to the older guys, it’s the best it’s been in years.”
When asked of the factors that contributed to the standoff, DeCoteau pointed towards the end of the selectmen’s bench, citing “disregard for laws” and “mistreatment” at the hands of Bill Levakis but now the former chief believes things are headed in the right direction.
“Everyone is going to sleep a lot easier tonight,” said DeCoteau.
“He’s a super temporary appointment,” Levakis said. “But we’ve got to be fair to everybody when hiring a chief, as far as advertising the position and interviewing. Right now, what we did was good.”
“(Brian) is a very good man, he has lots of experience,” said Brennan. “We’ll take everything under advisement, and we didn’t say it tonight, but the department will be in on any evaluations we make on candidates (for chief). We’re right back where we were last Monday, and we’re very pleased.”
Care himself is looking forward to handling interim duties and being considered for the position permanently.
“I think clarity was brought. There’s been some misunderstandings,” he said. “Things can get volatile at times and it didn’t help matters.”
Care is looking forward to working with Deputy Chief Thomas Ackley, and believes they can work on smoothing out the misunderstandings between the selectmen and the Fire Department.
Perhaps there was no one more important in bridging the gap between the two factions than Dolby, who served as a de facto representative for the firemen on the Board of Selectmen.
“I’m ecstatic,” he said. “It’s all I could ask for, that the guys that I’ve come to trust, that have got my back when we go into a burning building, are back. They’re invaluable members of the community. It’s like Christmas for me.”
When asked of the mutual aid alternatives that were put forth by the board in the early stages of the meeting, Dolby shook his head.
“This was the desired outcome, this was our central goal, to get them (the firefighters) back.”
