A Union City fire station was closing down for good Wednesday morning, a move made by the city and strongly criticized by public safety advocates.
Fire Station 30, operated by the Alameda County Fire Department, is set to close at 8 a.m. Wednesday after city leaders in October decided the station was underused based on a study conducted last summer analyzing the cost-effectiveness of all four of the city’s fire stations.
The independent study showed Station 30 was handling on average 1.7 calls a day at a cost of $3.2 million a year, the city said.
“We are indebted to the firefighters for keeping our residents safe during medical and fire emergencies; however, the City Council’s job is to be responsible fiscal agents of city resources,” Mayor Carol Dutra-Vernaci said in a statement. “We have been examining all city services in the last year to understand where we can be more efficient. Changes are being made citywide, not just with the Fire Department.
“The reality is that Fire Station 30 was underutilized at a high cost to residents,” the mayor added. “We are confident that we made a decision that was in the community’s best interest.”
Advocates with Keep Union City Safe have been highly critical of the closure, saying it will increase emergency response times throughout the city, putting public safety at risk. The group has circulated a petition on its website and is urging residents to demand the City Council keep the station open.
The city said personnel and equipment from Fire Station 30 will be transferred to other Fire Department locations within Alameda County.
Source: NBC Bay Area
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