Push councils to support our fire departments!

To the Editor:

What do we get from West Hants Council? One could say we get what we pay for or what we ask for.

Kudos to recreation director Kathy Kehoe and council with the Waste Management Team for the new ice resurfacer for the Newport and District Rink. Also to MLA Chuck Porter for the provincial funding to the Brooklyn Fire Department for equipment and to the Windsor Curling Club to rebuild.

From the news we can clearly see the Brooklyn fire hall is not acceptable A quick fix of roof leaks has allowed the building to reopen, although more work remains to be done to meet the inspection requirements.

The Brooklyn Volunteer Fire Department has built an exemplary service while receiving the lowest level of funding in West Hants. Their achievements show the true value of the firefighters and the auxiliary fundraising.

But they are getting tired. They lost 25 per cent of their firefighters last year and more will leave if conditions don’t change. They need assurance that a new fire hall will be built.

No one wants higher taxes, but every service costs money, be it education, garbage, recreation, social services, fire protection, administration or councillors’ salary.

Under the present conditions, we could lose the Brooklyn Fire Department’s ability to deliver service. If we have no fire hall, this changes our home and business fire insurance. It could cost far more in premiums than any rate increase on our property tax rate. How much longer would it take for medical aid or a traffic accident to receive help?

Brooklyn has been poorly served, as the village designation means no water or sewer will be considered. Twenty-five years ago it was promoted as ‘sewer and water coming soon’. Let it not be said in 2033, ‘a new fire hall - coming soon’.

We must impress on our council to work with the fire department and other levels of government to get the resources to build a new fire hall.

Brooklyn has a history of volunteers getting things done, but they can’t do it alone. Support our Fire Department!

Barry Bruce-Payne

McKay Section