PROVIDENCE, KY (1/18/12) – Faced with increasing budget challenges and an anticipated mandatory pay-out to city fire and ambulance department employees pending the outcome of a state audit, Providence Fire Chief Brad Curry said he is planning to conduct a meeting at the end of the month for people who would be interested in working with the fire department as volunteers.
 
Curry said the department will have many different needs and responsibilities to meet, and that he is hopeful that many people will come to the Jan. 28 meeting.
 
“The success of a volunteer fire department is going to be dependent on the dedication of the citizens of Providence,” Curry said. “I don’t want people to be reluctant. We will provide the training, and they (volunteers) can devote as little or as much time as they choose.
 
“I don’t want anybody to not do it because they think they don’t have to do it,” he added. “We really need to ramp up staffing of volunteers.”

The volunteer meeting is set for Saturday, Jan. 28, at 6 p.m. at the Providence City Council building. Curry said to start the volunteer fire department; he needs 20 people at a minimum.
 
Recently, the city of Providence, like many communities across the Commonwealth of Kentucky, were told a practice they had been following in accordance with state practices was being administered incorrectly, and that if any employees affected by the decision filed a grievance seeking compensation for overtime work not reimbursed correctly, the entire department would be audited. Curry said previously at least one city fire and ambulance department employee had filed such a grievance, triggering the audit. It’s not known when the audit will be finalized or its results made public, but city officials were anticipating it to be ready within the next few weeks.

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