Where is Templeton? Where is sparky the fire chief?


Orange Fire Department getting $561K FEMA grant;

ORANGE — The Orange Fire Department received a $561,906 grant for a pumper truck and an air compressor refill system from the Federal Emergency Management Agency through the Assistance to Firefighters Grant program.
It was announced Friday by the Massachusetts congregational delegation that FEMA awarded 18 Massachusetts fire departments with about $4.8 million in federal grants.
According to the FEMA website, the primary goal of the AFG program is to “enhance the safety of the public and firefighters with respect to fire-related hazards by providing direct financial assistance to eligible fire departments, nonaffiliated Emergency Medical Services organizations and state fire training academies.”
Orange Fire Chief James Young and Town Administrator Gabriele Voelker did not return phone calls for comment.
Congressman Jim McGovern, D-Worcester, spoke about Orange firefighters and the commitment first responders make to helping their communities.
“Every single day, courageous firefighters in cities and towns across our Commonwealth put their lives on the line to protect us,” McGovern said. “Keeping our communities safe starts with making strong investments in our first responders, and I’m proud that this new funding for firefighting equipment in Orange and Shrewsbury will help us protect them.”
Sen. Edward Markey, a Democrat, said firefighters helped ensure the safety of towns and the money will help them to do so.
“These heroes deserve the best equipment and resources available to them so they can continue to assist residents in their time of need. I commend all of the local leaders for their persistence in obtaining these critical federal funds,” Markey said.

What you do if you feel the pay or working conditions, etc., are that bad:

Police department in western Mass. town resigns en masse.

By Aimee Ortiz Globe Staff  July 31, 2018



The entire police department in Blandford, a small town in western Massachusetts, resigned Monday, leaving instructions for residents on what to do in the event of an emergency on its Facebook page.
“Attention Blandford residents: If you have a police, fire or medical emergency, please continue to call 911 as you normally would,” the post read. “The entire Blandford Police Department resigned this evening, effective immediately.”
The chair of the town’s board of selectmen, Cara Letendre, confirmed Monday night that the town’s three officers and interim police chief, Roberta Sarnacki, had resigned earlier in the day
“Fortunately the sheriff’s office and State Police have reached out to make sure our town has coverage,” she said, noting that the “vast majority of calls are routed to State Police anyway.”

“They’re a small, part-time police department,” said State Police Sergeant George Beautre of the barracks in nearby Russell. “That they referred calls to us is not the least bit unusual.”

Letendre said the board of selectmen also reached out to surrounding communities for assistance.
“I’m disappointed, to say the least, but I have no concerns about the safety of our residents because we’re covered, as we always are,” she said.
In a statement Monday, Letendre praised Sarnacki’s work over the past two months, but said she was dismayed that the interim chief had led the walkout.
“It is unfortunate that she led this officer walkout as she would have been considered as one of our candidates for [the] acting chief position as we pursue the future opportunities with our police force,” Letendre wrote.
According to WWLP 22 News, Sarnacki and the three police officers resigned “after multiple complaints to the town about unsafe working conditions.”
Sarnacki said that Blandford officers “have been working with cruisers that don’t work, bulletproof vests that are not fitted to them or might be expired, poor radio communications, inadequate staffing and improper wages,” the news outlet reported.
Sarnacki could not be reached for comment Monday.