Merger of MI Fire Department Aims to Improve Services

May 24—MESICK — Recent budget cuts prompted some local fire departments to make a tough decision — to join together and create a new kind of emergency management authority.

The new Northwest Wexford Emergency Authority's fire department consists of personnel and representation from Antioch, Hanover, Springville and Wexford townships.

According to the new website, the five-person board of directors for this emergency coalition are Tom Williams from Antioch, Dave Williams from Wexford, Peggy Benz from Hanover, Tom Stagg from Springville and Joe Hurlburt, who was elected to serve as the fifth board member.

NWEA treasurer Erica Szegda said the coalition was first established last March to provide more economical emergency medical and fire services to residents.

Former Buckley Fire Department Chief Michael Guernsey will serve as fire chief of this new authority, with paramedic and former assistant Buckley fire department Chief Justin Runyon serving as its director.

Guernsey's first official day in this new position was March 21, he said.

Talks about this new authority began almost a full year before that, when Guernsey said that the Village of Buckley formally disbanded ambulance services on Jan. 1, 2022.

He said they had missed 22 percent of their calls and full staffing was "harder and harder" to achieve.

But with the creation of the authority, Guernsey said their goal was to take three fire departments — Springville, Buckley and Mesick — and form one fire and rescue department.

"It's basically the same people, same trucks, doing the same thing, just a different name," he said.

Part of this merger, he explained, will be downsizing the number of buildings the new authority is in charge of from four or five to two, and downsizing the number of trucks in their fleet from 14 or 15 to "less trucks."

"By doing all of that, hopefully we can save some money," Guernsey said. "One common goal going forward is to try and up staffing."

Staffing was another big problem all the separate fire departments faced before the merger, he said. They're just weren't enough people to fully staff each individual department.

Certification changes over the years, the pandemic, an aging population and other departments hiring staff makes the field a lot more competitive for employers, Guernsey said.

Ideally, Guernsey said he would have two 24/7 firefighters and EMTs in Buckley and Mesick — four staff total between the two places.

But to achieve those numbers, he said they'll have to figure out money.

"Money right now is the biggest hold-up," he said. "So we still have to tweak the budget a little bit."

According to officials from the NWEA, budgets could change when the millages are up for re-election next year.

Guernsey said he plans on asking for more money through those millages when they expire.

As of Tuesday morning, Guernsey said he has hired 19 people for this new authority, and is still accepting more applications.

He said they're hoping to start up the authority's EMS services on June 1.

The next regular board meeting is scheduled for Thursday, May 25 at 6 p.m at the Mesick Fire Station.

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