Keep the home fires burning
Keep the home fires burning
Houghton F.D. now requires city residency
By GARRETT NEESE, DMG Writer
HOUGHTON — When Houghton’s firefighters respond to a blaze, they won’t be driving in from too far away.
The Houghton City Council Wednesday unanimously approved a change to the fire department’s bylaws requiring firefighters to live within city limits.
The department decided to adopt the change after several residents expressed an interest in joining the department, said Robert Megowen, a member of both the Council and the Fire Department.
Fire department members had sent the issue to committee for two meetings before narrowly recommending the change.
Councilman Gernot Joachim said with the fire department headquarters being so close to Portage Township, other factors than city residence might determine ease of access.
“People who live in Hurontown are closer to the fire department than I am,” he said.
However, Megowen said, members who live north of the bridge could be stymied if the Portage Lake Life Bridge was up.
Megowen said in the past, some members had retained their status in the department while moving away to areas such as Twin Lakes.
“All of a sudden, they’re showing up for two to three calls a year,” he said.
The change will affect no more than three of the department’s 22 members. Megowen said the vote had created “some hard feelings,” though he said they appeared to have been smoothed over.
Councilwoman Rachel Lankton said the change is reasonable.
“We need to know how many guys we can count on to help us at 2 in the morning,” she said.
Garrett Neese can be reached at gneese@mininggazette.com
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