Over the past few months, The Daily Herald has reported on the problems facing the Citizens Volunteer Fire Company. Tonight at a special meeting of Tyrone Borough Council, the official end of the 122-year-old company may come.
Not only has the company been struggling financially, but the number of firefighters has dwindled and the youth dances that were meant to be a fundraiser have caused damage to the building and has put a strain on the local police force on Friday nights.
Last week, the members of the fire company voted to disband the organization and one member joined the Hookies and 12 members joined the Neptunes this week.
Tonight the topic of the Citizens should become a part of the council’s agenda.
“I expect this (the Citizens situation) to be on the agenda,” said Tyrone Fire Chief and Councilmember Jim Beckwith. “If it comes to a vote, I would vote to pull the charter for the fire company, but we will have to see what the rest of council wants to do.”
The Citizens Social Hall mortgage is with Reliance Bank and in a statement from the bank, Reliance is committed to protecting the fire coverage in Tyrone.
“Reliance Bank would like to state that it has been working closely with the current management of the Citizens Fire Company and the Borough of Tyrone to implement a plan that will benefit all parties involved,” said Bob Bilger of Reliance Bank. “It is certainly Reliance Bank’s desire to maintain the level of fire protection for Tyrone and surrounding communities. Our initial discussion with community leaders provides every indication that this will happen. We have a strong commitment to Tyrone and the surrounding areas. We are confident that the outcome of this situation will be positive.”
Representatives of Reliance Bank and the Tyrone fire departments met on Saturday to discuss the situation.
“The bank is starting foreclosure proceedings,” said Beckwith. “We are working with the bank and the other fire companies to keep as much of the equipment here in Tyrone. They still have to inventory everything and then the other companies will look over what is there and see what they would like to purchase. We are waiting on the bank and things will proceed from there.”
The final nail in the ongoing saga was the disturbances at the youth dances held at the Social Hall. Tyrone Police Chief Joe Beachem reported to council that his department has responded to over 50 calls ranging to underage drinking to assult between adults inside the hall since the dances started at the Citizens in September.
Recently, Citizens Fire Chief Dave Lynch and assistant chief Mike Beckwith resigned their positions, causing the borough to order the company not to respond to any emergencies.
