Village of Earlville Fire Department is welcoming anyone interested in joining their ranks to visit the department on Saturday, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and /or from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. (Photo by Jessica Benson)

EARLVILLE –  The number of members in the Earlville Fire Department has been dropping in recent years. When fully staffed, the department had 15 to 20 members on their roles.

Current enrollment is down to just six members and without an infusion of new blood, responding to emergency calls is becoming difficult in the village.

“We’ve been looking at this for a few years. The department members continue to decline. We have six active members. Unless all six show up, it’s hard for them to roll a full crew,” said Earlville Mayor Thomas Taylor.

On Saturday, the department will open its doors from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and again from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. for anyone who has ever considered volunteering with the department. Without an influx of new members, the village may have to look at consolidation in the future.

“With just six members that we are running with, we rely a lot on mutual aid,” said Fire Chief Mike Doyle. A member of the department for the last 16 years, Doyle was just appointed to the role of Fire Chief last week, after spending a year as the assistant chief.

“It’s really hard today for people to commit to the training and the time commitment,” Doyle acknowledged. To be an interior firefighter, 200 hours of training are required. However, there are other positions in the department that are also severely short-staffed. Currently, the department has just three interior and three exterior firefighters. Positions available also include pump operators, drivers and basic rehab responders.

Those who join the fire department as a volunteer are eligible for a $200 tax break as well as a property tax credit. “There’s also the benefit of serving your community, taking care of the general public and the brotherhood of the department,” Doyle said. “We treat everyone like family.”

Since the department is so short-staffed, there is a lot of demand on the current crew. Mutual aid makes up a large part of the department’s calls. “When a mutual aid call comes in, they are expecting a crew of at least five people coming off the truck. We just don’t have enough manpower to supply that right now,” Doyle said.

“These men and women are working hard. They’re diligently involved and they put in a lot of time. We as a community haven’t supported them well,” Taylor said. He explained that the village contracts with neighboring communities to provide fire and EMS service. Currently however, the department does not have an EMT on the department. “Without more people willing to step up, we are preparing to have the conversation with neighboring departments on whether we can facilitate a merger.” Taylor explained that Earlville is in the early stages of this discussion. Town budget schedules would need to be examined in September and he stated that it could even be too late to have that discussion this year.

Community members can join the fire department when they are 16 years old, however in order to be an interior firefighter or a driver, you must be at least 18 years of age. The fire department pays for all necessary training and equipment.

A post on the department’s Facebook page explained that the department needs volunteers of all kinds. “If you don’t want to put on turnout gear and hop on a truck, we always need help with fundraising and with all the work that goes on behind the scenes to keep a fire department running.”

For more information, contact the Earlville Fire Department.