Tensions High At Middletown Town Council Meeting On Fire Staffing

MIDDLETOWN, RI — A contentious public meeting where more than 100 people gathered to voice their opinions on staffing levels at the Middletown Fire Department appears to have done little to reassure residents worried about the department's ability to respond to emergencies, or the union that has pushed for a 25 percent increase of fire personnel in the town.

Rhode Island State Association of Fire Firefighters President Joseph Andriole, who spoke late in the meeting Tuesday night at Middletown Town Hall, issued a statement Wednesday morning stating: "It was a surreal and unnerving experience to see the (Middletown) Town Council's reaction toward the community that came out for answers." Andriole added: "The Town Council made it abundantly clear that they didn’t want to deal with this crisis."

The staffing fight in Middletown came back to the forefront of public discussion on New Year's Eve when an11-year-old girl and her father were burned during a fire on Woolsey Road where mutual aid from Newport was first to respond. The Middletown firefighters on duty at the time were all on a medical call. The firefighters union, and some residents, said that fire was another indication why the town needs to increase staffing to meet the needs of an aging population and the increasingly comprehensive requirements of local fire departments.

"Let there be no mistake as to why the union and town are in arbitration," Andriole said. "It is not over wanting unrealistic pay or benefits. It is about not wanting to continue with dangerous, unrealistic staffing."

The audience at Tuesday's meeting was given a window for public opinion that some who were there to protest the staffing levels criticized for being too short and rigid. Andriole said of the speaking limit: "The council should have allowed and facilitated a forum for an open and honest discussion on this matter."

Council President Robert Sylvia told those attending that the council's objective is to keep fire and police staffing at safe levels.

"Ensuring we have enough firefighters and police officers is our highest priority," he told the crowd, adding that staffing is reviewed on a yearly basis.

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