The head of the firefighters union for the Coventry Fire District couldn’t tell the judge if his unpaid personnel would report to work on Friday.
Coventry Police Chief John S. MacDonald said that, while he served as the town’s emergency management coordinator, he had little authority over fire and rescue service, though it was his “assumption” a neighboring district would respond to calls if firefighters don’t work.
Only one of the four board members for the fire district showed up for the court hearing. And the state’s silence regarding what, if anything, it would do in a matter that Superior Court Judge Brian P. Stern termed a potential “crisis,” appeared to be the elephant in the room.
On Thursday, Stern in frustration said he would subpoena, if necessary, the four district board members to another court hearing Monday morning to learn what they intend to do now that Coventry Credit Union has frozen the district’s assets, assuring firefighters won't get paid any time soon and raising the potential of inadequate fire and rescue service for 17,000 residents.
The district's nine firefighters (several have resigned or retired in recent days) haven't been fully paid in more than 40 days. David Gorman, president of the firefighters union, said some of his men were hoping to hear Thursday that the credit union had reconsidered and was willing to release the account. That didn't happen.
Stern said he also wanted someone “with authority” from the credit union to attend Monday's meeting, along with union representatives, noting that assuming other districts would respond to their calls is “not good enough.”
The financially strapped fire district — whose voters chose to dissolve in June rather than face any further tax increases — has had a line of credit with the credit union since 2010. The district now owes the credit union $465,000.
The credit union says it moved to freeze the district’s account last week after the district’s board refused to even meet to discuss a repayment arrangement.