'This is not going to go away quietly': Greater Sudbury's fire department continues to be a hot topic

A month of public meetings on the future of fire halls in the outlying areas of Greater Sudbury is wrapping up.

In this latest round of a debate that's been going on for years, the city says closing nine fire stations will save money without putting people at risk, but rural residents aren't convinced. 

"We are still are under the umbrella of the greater city of Sudbury, we should be protected," said Ralph Prentice, who lives in the rural community of Beaver Lake on the western reaches of city limits. 

"Because that's why we pay our taxes."

The plan being considered by the city would see the Beaver Lake hall— which like others in the outlying areas is staffed by only a handful of part-time firefighters, often referred to as volunteers— closed and consolidated with the one in Whitefish, 14 km away.

"Win lose or draw, they're in for a battle," said Prentice, who wants to see the city instead fix up or replace Beaver Lake's aging fire station. 

"This is not going to go away quietly."

Several of the proposed changes have already happened on a temporary basis, including in the hamlet of Skead, which saw its fire brigade move to Garson a year and a half ago.

Lifelong Skead resident Karleigh Farnel worries that her community will be less safe, especially considering the winding roads to the north around Lake Wanapitei, where many new homes have been built in recent years. 

"I'm raising two daughters out here and I'm concerned that if something was to happen how long is it going to take for emergency services to respond?" said the 36-year-old. 

"I think the city needs to look at each area and its unique geography."

Greater Sudbury fire officials say the changes won't lead to a significant increase in response times, partly because the full-time firefighters who once only went to calls in Sudbury proper have been covering the outlying areas for close to a decade now.

The city also says it is dealing with a dwindling number of part-time firefighters, as are cities and towns across North America.

City staff say the aging fire stations have seen $1 million spent on "unplanned asset failures" and have earmarked $538,000 for the building of new halls and renovations to existing ones.