3 Philipsburg-area fire companies set to merge. ‘Going to help the community a lot’
Three Philipsburg-area fire companies said Thursday they are merging into one operation for the first time in their 145-year history, setting aside years of friction in an effort to strengthen emergency coverage and secure better access to funding.
The consolidation would bring together Reliance Fire Co., Hope Fire Co. and Chester Hill Hose Co., three volunteer fire companies that have served the rural Philipsburg area since the 1880s. It is pending state approval.
Decision-makers said the merger will allow the companies to pool volunteers, equipment and funding at a time when many rural departments face shrinking membership and rising costs. It could also improve eligibility for state grants.
“It doesn’t make sense to have three fire departments within a few blocks of each other,” Reliance Chief Robert Ferguson said. “I know it’s been like that for over 100 years and tradition means a lot to a lot of guys here, but it’s time to change with the times.”
Several members quietly stood back Thursday as one of Hope’s fire trucks backed into Reliance’s station. Once the vehicle was parked, Ferguson rhetorically asked “You ever think you’d see that?”
Reliance and Hope have tossed around the idea of merging for years, often nearing but not crossing the finish line.
At the beginning of last year, Reliance and Hope each pursued separate mergers that never materialized. Reliance had planned to merge with Morris Township Volunteer Fire Co., while Hope planned to merge with Chester Hill. Finger-pointing soon followed.
Longtime Philipsburg Mayor John Streno said at the time that he didn’t understand why and encouraged the three to keep talking and figured out a way to operate as one.
There didn’t appear to be a single reason those mergers never came to fruition. Ferguson acknowledged there’s long been a rivalry between the two and Hope Deputy Chief Justin Butterworth chalked it up to “a snag here, a snag there.”
“It was something I’ve thought would have happened a long time ago,” Butterworth said. “Different things prevented or stopped us in the past from doing it. I’m a little surprised, but pleasantly surprised.
“All three companies have their own history, their own things that everybody wants to hang onto and is afraid of losing. The company history is something that’s important, but it’s not as important as providing the best service that we can.”
About 30 members would make up the consolidated fire department, which does not yet have an official name or chief. Butterworth said it would be a “unified command structure.”
If the state OKs the plan, Butterworth said they are hoping for the merge to be finalized by the end of the year. They also hope to construct a new fire station beside Hope’s existing building, which would be torn down and used for parking.
“It’s going to help the community a lot,” Ferguson said.
In the interim, the consolidated company would be headquartered from Reliance’s station along North Third Street. Other equipment would be kept at Hope and Chester Hill.
Ferguson appeared confident the merger will have staying power despite decades of tension, saying the companies and their members will “forget about any feuds that we’ve had.”
“I figure after about two or three years with the new crew that will be coming in, nobody will even remember Hope and Reliance,” Ferguson said. “They’ll just know Philipsburg Fire Department.”
In what amounted to an early show of support, Butterworth agreed.
“I believe the community as a whole will support it. I believe it’s a good possibility that some of the community doesn’t even know what’s going on,” Butterworth said. “A lot of people don’t pay a whole lot of attention to emergency services or the volunteer fire service until they need them.
“... We want to show them that we’re here doing what we can to put their money, their donations or their tax dollars to the best use that we can to provide the best service that is available in town.”
