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Lawmakers Urged To Fund Program For Volunteer Firefighters Amid Shortages And An Aging Force

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State lawmakers are being urged to fund a program they created four years ago to provide payments to longtime volunteer firefighters.

China Fire Chief Tim Theriault says the small grants paid into deferred compensation accounts will help recruit more badly needed volunteers.

“Guys, you got to realize we can’t fight these fires without people,” Theriault says. “My average age in my department was 62 years old. It was an antique roadshow going down the road.”

Membership in the Maine State Federation of firefighters is down by about 25 percent to about 7,000 firefighters across the state. The legislature is being asked to spend $5 million over two years to set up the accounts and provide grants.

“For more than three centuries, Maine and the rest of America have relied on volunteers to provide the bulk of their emergency response services,” says Ken Desmond, President Maine State Federation of Firefighters. “Through the dedicated service volunteer and call responders save Maine cities and towns countless millions of dollars annually.”

Journalist Mal Leary spearheads Maine Public's news coverage of politics and government and is based at the State House.