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Fall River firefighters and chief signal shortfalls in budget, equipment and stations
Summary
At a June 4 Fall River City Committee on Finance hearing, a union leader and the fire chief said the municipal budget proposal does not address aging apparatus, unsafe station conditions and understaffing; councilors pressed for capital planning and requested documentation and site visits.
Michael O'Regan, president of Local 13/14, told the Fall River City Council Committee on Finance on June 4 that the proposed fiscal 2026 budget will leave the Fire Department underfunded and put residents and firefighters at risk. “The people of the city deserve a fire department that is fully staffed, fully equipped, and properly funded,” O’Regan said during the citizen input period.
O’Regan gave specific examples he said illustrated maintenance failures: frontline reserve apparatus that broke down during a January 2022 blizzard and again on May 19, 2025; ladder apparatus with hydraulic failures; and station buildings he described as infested with cockroaches, rats and mice, with asbestos, crumbling floors, mold and raw sewage in basements. He named Stanley Street, the Center station (Bedford Street), the Flint station and the Globe station among those with long‑standing problems.
Those statements set the tone for a lengthy budget review in which Fire Chief Jeffrey Bacon said he is “not happy with the budget” as proposed and said it…
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