Residents and volunteer chiefs press Norwich council over denied mutual-aid apparatus and volunteer reinstatement

Mayor Singh presided over a March 16 Norwich City Council meeting where residents and volunteer fire leaders urged the council to restore mutual-aid cooperation after what several speakers described as the city denying a requested apparatus to serve as a water fill site during a recent Montville structure fire.

The nut graf: multiple speakers, including Deputy Chief Pete Clark of Laurel Hill and several longtime volunteers, described operational problems and local consequences they attribute to recent city decisions. Speakers cited an example in which an East Great Plains engine that could have served as a fill-site was not permitted to leave town, and called for clearer unified command, reinstatement of volunteer companies and greater transparency from city leadership.

Deputy Chief Pete Clark said he was “extremely disappointed the city denied valuable resources to respond,” recounting that the engine designated for a water fill site was kept from leaving and that tankers were reduced to low water levels before a reliable fill site was established. Clark outlined how rural water supply typically relies on an engine-run fill site and drop tanks to maintain thousands of gallons of water, and argued withholding an available apparatus endangered the response.

Kira Simpson, a resident who explained the Incident Management System, urged consistent incident command at emergency scenes so roles and tasks — first engine attack, second engine establishing water supply — are clear when units arrive. “It creates a clear structure so everyone knows their role the moment they arrive,” she said, describing IMS as a national standard.

Several other speakers described footage and operations they said showed confusion at the scene. Matt Simpson described video he viewed of Engine 3, saying that the city truck “continues to go down the lane” while another engine from Yantic was already positioned to supply water; he said command should have directed movement so Engine 33 could be placed “on water.”

Longtime volunteers and residents framed the dispute as both operational and civic. Former city manager and volunteer John Bilda warned council actions were “wrong,” saying sidelining 58 volunteers diminishes community spirit. Joanne Philberg told the council she found the invocation “hypocritical” given what she called inattention from some members and warned insurers had told her they might not insure homes if the fire-department situation remains unresolved. Mark Adams, a resident, said voters have repeatedly rejected a citywide paid fire department and urged the council to reinstate volunteers and seek transparency instead of top-down unification.

City Manager (name not specified in the record) had reported earlier that the city is in mediation with four volunteer fire companies “with the goal of reaching a resolution that prioritizes public safety and operational continuity,” and said the city stands ready to reinstate any volunteer company that “agrees to meet these professional benchmarks.” When asked about a tax-services vendor contract cited during resolution votes, the City Manager confirmed there is a contract and it had been extended at the same prices for a few years.

Speakers representing neighborhood fire companies also offered public thanks to long-serving units: a Bliss Place resident publicly thanked Yantic Fire Department for decades of support during floods and other calls.

The meeting produced no formal action on the volunteer companies at this session; councilors received multiple communications and held routine votes on tax-related resolutions earlier in the agenda. The public-comment period ran the full allotted 30 minutes and closed without council direction to reinstate any specific company at tonight’s meeting.

Next steps: the record shows ongoing mediation between the city and four volunteer fire companies; no reinstatement or formal policy change was recorded during this meeting.