By Josh Margolis
HAVRE, Mont. (NMB) – The Hill County Rural Fire District 1 Board held their regular monthly meeting on Tuesday and reported that progress has been made towards a fire suppression agreement with the city of Havre.
Chairman Steven Jamruszka says that both sides have agreed on the need to use the the 2012 edition of the International Fire Codes, which is described as the “most current and innovative set of regulations to safeguard life and property from fires and explosion hazards.”
However, Jamruszka says some clarifications need to be made regarding building inspections and the potential process of training someone to conduct them.
The previous agreement expired at the end of June after the city terminated the agreement, but the City of Havre has decided to continue to respond to calls in the District through August 30th as negotiations continue.
The Board is scheduled to meet again on September 14th at 11 AM in the Timmons Room of the Hill County Courthouse. If a tentative agreement is reached before then, the Board could call a special meeting prior to September 14th.
According to the City, if an agreement is not reached or the deadline is not extended: starting on September 1st, 911 calls to dispatch from Rural Fire 1 will be referred back to Rural Fire 1. At that point, options the District has could request mutual aid or using a private contractor.
Other action taken at the meeting:
- The Board voted to remove Alan LaBuda and Bob Jacobsen from the Board. Neither have attended a Board meeting in months, and the County Commission will now formally vote on their removal. If they are removed, the process of replacing them will begin.
- Following the end of a two month public comment period, the Board approved a request from Clyde R. Thomas to have an acre of land removed from RF1 and put into the boundaries of the Bear Paw Volunteer Fire Department. This must also be approved by the Commission, and the land will be used to house Bear Paw’s equipment.
