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Taylor council votes to suspend fire company

A borough council in Lackawanna County voted to suspend a fire company's operations beginning next month if they can't agree on a plan to consolidate.

TAYLOR, Pa. — The future of Taylor Hose and Engine Company #1 is up in the air. During this week's borough council meeting, Taylor officials voted to suspend the fire company, pulling them completely out of service beginning November 8.

"They're going to stop funding, giving them any funds, and cut off any of our existing insurances and workman's comp, you know, would be the steps that are being cut off," said borough manager Dan Zeleniak.

Zeleniak says the borough has been trying to work with the fire company for more than a year, asking its members to merge with Taylor Fire and Rescue.

"Manpower issues, driver issues, certification issues, and they just feel it would be a benefit to Taylor borough that we can get the two companies together as one," said Zeleniak.

Newswatch 16 reached out to the Taylor Hose and Engine Company about the impending suspension. The fire company brought on attorney Mike Ossont to assist them in this matter. Ossont says they have been in talks with Taylor Fire and Rescue about the merger.

Ossont said:

"It's not a matter of don't want to do it. It's more a matter of how do we protect our members and the hard work of the history of our department in the process of merging together to provide appropriate fire service in Taylor?"

Ossont went on to say, "It's a complicated situation of membership and assets and things of that nature, and it's not at all that Company #1 doesn't want to merge. It's just they want to make sure they do things the right way."

Taylor officials say they want to assure residents they won't see any changes to emergency responses if no plan is set in stone for the two companies to merge by November 8.

The borough says if Taylor Hose and Engine can come up with a plan to respond to more calls or agree on terms for a merger, it could revoke the suspension at the next borough council meeting.

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