The Winslow Township Fire Department in Camden County once had 140 volunteer firefighters serving at nine stations, including some fire stations dating back to the early 20th century.
But as a nationwide shortage of volunteer firefighters has plagued local communities over the past decade, the South Jersey township’s ranks of firefighters have dwindled to just 35.
Due to staffing shortages, Winslow will close three of the four remaining volunteer fire stations by the end of the year and consolidate the department into a single headquarters, Fire Chief Marc Rigberg announced last month.
Fire stations in Albion, Elm and Tansboro will close, leaving Station 25-3 on Cedar Brook Road as the department’s only location, the chief said.
“On many occasions we are overstaffed and unable to adequately respond to calls for service with enough qualified firefighters in a timely manner,” Rigberg said in a statement. “It is desired that by forming a large station, our volunteer firefighters will have an easier and more effective response capacity.”
In recent years, the municipality has sounded the alarm about declining interest in becoming a volunteer firefighter.
In 2022, Winslow Township’s Cedar Brook Volunteer Fire Company temporarily ceased operations due to low staffing levels, despite increased call volume.
Winslow tried several tactics to attract volunteers, including providing a stipend of between $60 and $90 for each six-hour volunteer period. The department also offered to cover training and equipment costs, provide a retirement investment plan and other incentives, the chief said.
However, budget constraints, along with overstretched staff, made it difficult to maintain multiple stations, officials said.
“We simply can no longer sustain the number of stations and equipment at this time,” Rigberg said.
Tansboro Volunteer Fire Company in Winslow Township, one of the stations that will close at the end of the year.
Many volunteers juggle other responsibilities, including family, work, financial obligations, and school. That makes it difficult for volunteers to meet demands for training, incident response, equipment maintenance and other commitments, the chief said.
The declining number of volunteer firefighters has been a problem throughout New Jersey, not just Camden County, Rigberg said.
Most firefighters in the United States are volunteers, according to the National Volunteer Fire Council, a nonprofit association. In 2020, there were 676,900 volunteer firefighters in the United States, more than 9% fewer than in 2018, according to association statistics.
In a much smaller South Jersey municipality, Upper Deerfield in Cumberland County, the municipality last year had to close one of its three volunteer fire companies due to rising tax rates and the expenses needed to keep it open.
Closing the 94-year-old station was the most cost-effective solution, Upper Deerfield council members said when they voted on the plan. The decision should save the township about $100,000 a year, according to officials.
The Winslow Township Fire Department covers nearly 60 square miles, including the small township of Chesilhurst, which shares fire services with the township.
With a shortage of volunteers and a growing population threatening response times, several measures have been implemented to ensure the department operates efficiently, officials said.
The department added mutual aid from neighboring towns to its dispatch team and recently integrated paid professional firefighters into its stations.
Consolidating the three volunteer stations should not have an impact on response times, Rigberg said in his May 14 notice.
Still, changes will continue to be evaluated to ensure the community’s needs are met, he added.
“We take providing fire and rescue services very seriously and our goal is to provide that service in the best, safest and most effective way possible,” Rigberg said. “There is no doubt that these actions are harsh and not what we want.”
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Nyah Marshall can be reached at Nmarshall@njadvancemedia.com.
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