Providence Rescinds Fire Dept. Lockdown
Thursday, March 31, 2011
The city has rescinded an order issued last year by Fire Chief George Farrell that imposed a so-called lockdown on fire stations throughout Providence, according to a document obtained by GoLocalProv.
The original order set strict limitations on when fire trucks could leave the stations—limiting out-of-station trips to all but official business. Union officials told GoLocalProv that the order prevented them from driving through the neighborhoods around the station in order to get know them better. They said it also limited their ability to do simple chores like shopping—something that they said becomes a necessity during long shifts.
But Farrell said he issued the order because firefighters were abusing the system. He said some members of the force had been caught at a shopping center in Cranston loading crates of soda onto a fire truck. In another incident, he said a parked truck near a downtown coffee shop had blocked traffic.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTNew order heals rift between management, union
The lockdown order also had been blamed for strained relations between the Fire Department management and the union.
The new order, dated March 14, rescinds the “lockdown,” according to union President Paul Doughty, who declined to comment further. The order was issued jointly by Public Safety Commissioner Steven Pare and Farrell.
The order outlines eight conditions under which fire trucks may leave stations. That list includes “professional purposes that assist in meeting our daily mission,” such as “district familiarization, purchase of food, supplies, and goods.”
“Company officers should endeavor to remain within their geographic company district as much as practical,” Pare and Farrell wrote. “They are also expected to exercise good judgment regarding the location and use of their apparatus.”
The mayor’s office declined to elaborate yesterday.
Padlock photo credit: Alyson Hurt
