Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, May 21, 1995 TAG: 9505200012
SECTION: HORIZON PAGE: G5 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DIANE STRUZZI STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
No need to ask about the relationship between Vinton's volunteers and paid firefighters. The signs are all there.
Attached to a closet door in the volunteer fire chief's office is a quote attributed to Al Capone: "You can get other people to do more with a kind word and a gun than you can with just a kind word."
Walk upstairs to the former career fire captain's office and there is another telling quote tacked to a filing cabinet. "Official Notice: The beatings will continue until morale improves - The Management."
The sniping isn't unusual when it comes to the two groups. Career firefighters say it boils down to jealousy - both groups perform the same job but only one gets paid. Volunteers say career firefighters want to eliminate their jobs, turning the department into a 24-hour paid fire crew.
In Vinton's case the petty arguments have gnawed away at the company's ability to work effectively and attract new volunteers, some say.
"Of course what I want to see is a department who gets along, works well together and performs its duties on the fire ground," says Volunteer Fire Chief Barry Fuqua, who supervises both paid and volunteer staff. "I don't promote anyone having any hard feelings or animosity to any group."
Yet the friction remains. The once 42-member volunteer staff has dwindled to 29. Firefighters talk about some calls where engine and ladder trucks roll out of the station understaffed. And, last month, problems erupted publicly when career Fire Capt. Donnie Foutz resigned after working hours for career personnel were abruptly changed by Vinton Town Council.
Fuqua says he recommended extending the hours for career firefighters after a 1994 study showed fewer volunteers were available to answer calls between 7 and 8 a.m. Foutz was notified by letter a day before council voted on the change.
He says the change in hours came only after he began challenging the line of authority in the Fire Department, filing an appeal of a town grievance in Circuit Court. In it he questioned why Fuqua, a volunteer, was allowed to supervise career firefighters. The appeal was dismissed because the judge ruled that under town rules, the issue could not be addressed under grievance procedures.
Fuqua would not discuss Foutz's specific case. In a prepared statement, however, he acknowledged that "minor" problems exist between the two groups.
Roanoke County career firefighter Mark Hall has heard the complaints from both sides. He is a former volunteer with the Vinton Fire Department and is currently on loan from the county while the town hires two more career firefighters to boost its paid staff to four.
"The volunteers say they've been told to stay away from the paid staff, that the paid staff will corrupt them," Hall says. "That alone can hurt service. A lot of young people, they don't understand when you've got a fire you need every hand you can get. They have to understand that that attitude is not just hurting the paid people, it's hurting everyone."
Several volunteers acknowledge a rift between the two groups. But they say they do answer calls during the daytime if they are available. If a fire call goes out, the priority is getting to the scene.
"As far as answering calls, when you're fighting a fire, I don't think about petty disputes," says volunteer firefighter Bob Zampogna. The paid firefighters "would probably risk their lives to save me, and I'd do the same to save them."
by CNB