Two Merced County fire stations to remain open amid funding battle

MERCED, Calif. (KFSN) -- Merced County occurrence stations that were acceptable to adjacent adjacent week are getting an extension.

The Board of Supervisors voted to support the firehouses unfastened until the extremity of the year, arsenic section leaders enactment toward a much semipermanent solution. Local officials are going backmost and distant trying to find alternate fiscal plans to unit their occurrence stations, for many, this is beingness oregon death.

Two stations are successful limbo, McKee Station 85 and Livingston Station 96 successful Merced County.

For Livingston, a increasing municipality of astir 15,000 this presumption is their lifeline.

"If it wasn't for the firefighter section That came to my location during emergencies I had with my wife, I'd beryllium telling you a antithetic story. She wouldn't beryllium here. Personally, I'm telling you we request them here," says David Vargas, Livingston Resident.

New CalFire rules present necessitate the region to prosecute 27 caller firefighters, costing astir $6.9 million, which the region says they conscionable don't have.

"Merced County sees a shortfall successful their budgeting, truthful they're trying to bash immoderate consolidation to equilibrium their budget," says Gurpal Samra, Livingston Mayor Pro Tem.

Mayor Pro Tem Gurpal Samra says the metropolis already pays the region implicit a cardinal dollars annually for its presumption and are consenting to wage immoderate indispensable support the presumption alive.
"We besides are exploring the anticipation of Livingston conscionable backing its ain presumption and conscionable abstracted from the county. If that's what they wish, past that's what we person to do," says Samra.

There are a fewer backup plans that could halt this from happening. The region and metropolis anticipation to person a SAFER assistance that could bargain them immoderate time. But, if that doesn't travel through, it could beryllium successful the voter's hands successful November arsenic the region and metropolis are putting up income taxation measures connected the ballot.

"If the county-wide income taxation passes, we'll astir apt proceed to tally a associated occurrence station. If, for immoderate reason, the region doesn't walk the Livingston Measure L passes, past we're hoping to enactment retired immoderate benignant of statement with the region to bargain america immoderate clip truthful we tin enactment our modulation into effect," says Samra.

If the closures spell through, those successful Livingston tin expect hold times to spell from astir 5 minutes to implicit 20 minutes.

"If idiosyncratic is suffering a bosom attack, you telephone 911there's nary request due to the fact that successful 15 minutes that idiosyncratic is dead. You mightiness arsenic good telephone the morgue. That's however superior it is," says Samra.

Gary Pintner lives successful a elder assemblage and says the town's aging colonisation can't hold that agelong for help.

"I beryllium connected my structure a lot, and I tin archer you the fig of times firetrucks person travel successful the older radical a batch of america here. We request the occurrence presumption here. I don't cognize however other to accidental it," says Pintner.

At this constituent the region and the metropolis stay astatine likelihood arsenic the metropolis is threatening to record a lawsuit. But astatine this constituent a suit has yet to beryllium filed.

In a connection to Action News, Merced County said, "Merced County continues to research each disposable enactment to adequately unit our occurrence stations. While stations whitethorn request to beryllium consolidated and streamlined, the extremity is to supply the champion occurrence extortion services imaginable with the finite resources available."