GARY | The firefighting manpower within the city of Gary continued to shrink Friday, with more firefighters being sent home as part of a budget-crunching solution.
The department was operating Friday with 16 firefighters spread across four open stations, using three engines and one fire truck, firefighters union President Capt. Raynard Robinson said.
Daily manpower typically includes four trucks, 12 engines and about 70 firefighters. Last week, the city sliced staffing in half.
The city has reduced staffing while complying with a court order mandating a minimum of four firefighters staffed to on-call rigs.
Robinson called it "another wave of stupidity from our city."
In an effort to battle a financial crisis, Gary Mayor Rudy Clay has recommended all city employees work shorter weeks. He questioned Friday why Gary's department needs four firefighters to each rig when departments in Hammond, East Chicago, Valparaiso and South Bend make do with three.
"We have the bravest firefighters anywhere in the country," Clay said. "It's not about them being afraid to ride three on a rig. It's about overtime money."
Clay said the city has spent $240,000 this month on overtime to staff four firefighters to each rig.
"We can't afford to keep doing that," he said.
The city is entrenched in legal squabbles with its fire and police unions regarding cuts in pay and work hours. Clay has said his city will run out of money in a month and has imposed 20 percent pay cuts among city workers.
Because firefighters work irregular hours, the changes put into effect amount to a 20 percent cut, city spokeswoman LaLosa Burns said.
Robinson said the city again sent firefighters home from work Friday, a move the city began two weeks ago.
Meanwhile, in a seeming contradiction to the staff reductions, city officials began calling firefighters into work who had been on vacation and said firefighters could not take compensation days earned instead of being paid overtime, Robinson said.
"They're killing morale," Robinson said while sitting with other out-of-work firefighters at the group's union hall. "We don't know what to do."
Gary Fire Chief Jeffrey Ward also shut down the department's garage, meaning staff could not work to maintain or repair any equipment, Robinson said.
"If you're not working on broken equipment, what good is it," Robinson said.
Ward did not return a call requesting comment.
A hearing on the union's legal fight concerning the minimum number of firefighters on each rig is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. Tuesday in Lake County Court.
