Leadership

PA Fire Chief Charged with Theft; Fire Dept. Suspended

Jan. 8, 2023

Paxtang Fire Company No. 1 has been suspended by the borough council after the membership refused to sideline the chief after he was charged with theft.

By Jonathan Bergmueller

Source pennlive.com

The Paxtang Borough Council has suspended the Paxtang Fire Company No. 1 from responding to fires after the volunteer agency refused to sideline its fire chief who was accused of stealing thousands of dollars on an unrelated HVAC job.

The move prevents all Paxtang Fire Company trucks and firefighters from responding to fire calls in the borough or providing assistance on fire calls in Swatara Township, the borough announced in a press release sent Friday night.

The news release came shortly after PennLive published a story about Dauphin County investigators charging Matt Lemmon, the Paxtang Fire Company Chief, of stealing $36,000 from a Harrisburg business through an unfinished HVAC job.

Court records said Lemmon took $72,000 for the job, delivered about $35,000 in equipment but did no installation, and kept the remaining money while ignoring them for two years.

The Paxtang Fire Company refused to immediately suspend Lemmon from its ranks in light of the charges, according to the Paxtang Borough Council.

“Public safety is paramount, and due to the inaction of the Paxtang Fire Company, the Paxtang Borough Council has no other recourse,” Keldeem Zellers Stambaugh, the Paxtang Borough Manager, said.

The Swatara Township Fire and Rescue has been Paxtang Borough’s primary fire service since Aug. 1, 2022, and will continue to provide services for Paxtang Borough with assistance from other mutual aid partners.

Paxtang Borough declined to comment further on the situation.

Other municipalities in Dauphin County could continue to call on the Paxtang Fire Company 1 for mutual aid unless they also decided to take action to remove the company from the dispatch list of responders, known as a “box card.”

This removal occurs months after Paxtang Borough Council shifted primary fire services over to the Swatara Township Fire Rescue to make up for a declining trend in volunteer firefighters.

Residents who spoke out against the contract with Swatara Township said they preferred Harrisburg Fire Department, and were concerned Swatara Township would close Paxtang’s fire house.