Tensions High Between Owego Village Board and Village Firefighters

Following delays in the Owego Village Board’s approval of updated safety policies, a number of volunteer firefighters are threatening to quit. According to officials, at least 21 firefighters have plans to leave the department if the Owego Village Board of Trustees does not approve the new operations manual. The changes to the operations manual come from an effort to increase safety following the January 2013 death of Captain Matthew Porcari, who died fighting a house fire in Newark Valley. When the new manual was presented to the village board for approval last Monday, the board voted 6-to-1 to delay its formal consideration until mid-June. Mayor Kevin Millar was the only board member to vote against delaying the approval. The other five voted to table the approval so board members would have time to familiarize themselves with the new standards. Now, the active members of the fire department, are forcing the issue by staging a mass-resignation at tomorrow night’s village board meeting, if the standards are not immediately adopted. Due to the large amount of people expected to be in attendance, that meeting has already been moved by Mayor Millar to the Hubbard Auditorium at the county office building at 56 Main Street in Owego. The meeting is set to start at 7 o’clock.