The absence of volunteers at the Colonial Volunteer Fire Co. has led to fire apparatus being unable to respond to emergency calls during the evening and overnight hours recently, officials say and documents show.
The turnout has been so low in the past few months that the company's volunteer fire chief, Joseph Scharnitz Jr., sent a letter to Mercer County's dispatch center in May asking for indefinite backup for Colonial's response area.
The May 10 letter, obtained by NJ Advance Media, asks for an extra fire engine - from another fire station - to be dispatched to all fire calls after 5 p.m. until 7 a.m. on weekdays, and all weekend. "This will be until further notice," Scharnitz wrote.
A crew of career firefighters, who work for Hamilton Fire District 8, man the station on weekdays from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Wayne D'Artagnan, president of District 8's board of fire commissioners, said the district plans to hire an additional career firefighter and is working actively on the issue.
But volunteerism at Colonial is an ongoing issue for the fire company, as is the mandated 2 percent cap on tax levy increases that fire districts in New Jersey must comply with.