Swarthmore and Nether Providence are exploring a merger of fire departments to compensate for a drop in volunteers and aging equipment.
The proposed merger would unite the South Media and Garden City fire companies in Nether Providence with the Swarthmore Fire and Protective Association.
Swarthmore and Nether Providence commissioned Longwood Fire Chief A.J. McCarthy to study the challenges facing the three fire departments. He presented his report to both municipalities in early December.
The report recommended creating one regional fire department to cover the two municipalities plus Rose Valley.
McCarthy’s report highlighted a “critical” lack of volunteer firefighters and financial limitations.
“Just because you haven’t had a disastrous fire doesn’t mean it’s not going to happen,” McCarthy said during a presentation of his report to Swarthmore Borough Council on Dec. 1. “I can tell you right now you’re not prepared for it.”
Swarthmore Mayor and Fire Chief Conlen Booth called the report “a vital first step” toward a merger.
“The departments are going to need to sit down and look at these recommendations and then digest them,” Booth said. “And then identify ultimately what are ones that make sense for us.”
A complete merger, forming one regional fire department, could take a year and a half to three years, he said, while something less formal could be completed more quickly.
“I think there’s a very good chance that we would follow [the report’s recommendation] with maybe some nuances,” Booth said. “But there is no guarantee that happens and we could have other types of mergers, or we could start with other mergers and then evolve into that full merger.”
Booth has a history of working in emergency services. He joined Swarthmore’s fire company in 2000, eventually working his way up to department chief.
A single regional fire department would need new bylaws, a new charter, joint operation guidelines, and more. A complete merger would also require the departments to dissolve their existing nonprofit organizations and relief associations and create new ones.
“A lot of these pieces are not difficult, it’s the sheer number of pieces that can be felt to be overwhelming,” Booth said.
Nether Providence passed a resolution in support of the merger effort, but Township Manager Maureen Feyas declined to comment on the matter.
Lack of volunteers
The biggest challenge for the fire departments is a drop in volunteers. In a 2023 report, Pennsylvania Fire Commissioner Thomas Cook said there were about 30,000 volunteers in the state at that time, down from 300,000 in the 1970s.
South Media and Garden City operate solely with volunteers, while Swarthmore has some paid personnel.
The report, however, says the full-time staff gives the department a “false confidence,” because they respond to both fire and medical emergencies. If two employees leave in the ambulance, that leaves only one behind with little volunteer support during daytime hours.
The report also says South Media was “unable to produce a reliable and constant response” due to lack of volunteers.
Garden City has had more success with volunteers. During a meeting in which McCarthy presented his report to Swarthmore Borough Council, he praised Garden City Chief Pat O’Rourke.
“He’s doing an excellent job and is increasing volunteer numbers year-over-year, which is almost unheard of right now,” McCarthy said.
Part of the reason these fire departments struggle to find volunteers is because they are located in affluent areas, McCarthy said, something he can attest to in his experience leading Longwood Fire Company in Chester County.
“The area I protect has a very high cost of living, so I don’t have residents looking to do one of the most dangerous jobs in the world for free,” McCarthy said in the council meeting. “I have a lot of CFOs and CEOs. They’re busy in hospitals and law firms.”
In 2024, Swarthmore had a median income of $146,992 and Nether Providence’s median income was $145,254, well above the national median of $83,730.
Equipment cost and maintenance
A capital apparatus plan is also needed for upgrading and maintaining expensive fire trucks, ambulances, and other lifesaving equipment, the report states.
Trucks have doubled in price over the last three years and take about five years to deliver, he said at the Swarthmore Borough Council meeting.
“These things have to be planned out,” McCarthy said. “You can’t spend $2.5 million to replace a ladder truck and only start talking about it four months before you order it.”
One of Swarthmore’s trucks costs more to maintain than to use, he said.
Crozer’s closing
The closing of Crozer-Chester Medical Center also put a burden on the area, with more medical emergencies to cover.
Swarthmore stood up an ambulance service that can provide advanced life support in response to the closure, and it nearly doubled the number of calls the department responds to in a month, Booth said.
The loss of Crozer’s ambulance service also means departments are being pulled further away to cover medical emergencies, causing a chain reaction where other departments are called to cover for them.
Crozer’s new owner, Chariot Equities, said last week it hoped to reopen the hospital and resume emergency services in the county within two years.
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