When something is on fire or there is a car accident, it’s natural to think firefighters will be one of the first groups to respond. However, for several fire departments in Plymouth County, a lack of manpower leading to longer response times is a growing concern. While Le Mars, Akron, Kingsley, and Remsen all have fully staffed departments, Hinton, Oyens and Merrill are in need of volunteers. Merrill currently has 12 volunteers, and Chief Jacob Conley said that number used to be closer to 20.