Some local fire and rescue chiefs are pushing back against the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities closure of the Silvertip Maintenance Station, located at the junction of the Seward and Hope highways.
DOT&PF says five staffers have been moved and the station will no longer be responsible for plowing and maintenance of the the 17-mile Hope Highway, as well as Turnagain Pass from mile markers 45 to 74. The department also says there will be no regular maintenance between 10 p.m. and 4 a.m.
"If the road isn't plowed, sanded and serviced then I can't imagine that we're going to be able to roll our equipment out to go help anybody," said Brendan Maguire, who is the chief of Hope Sunrise Emergency Services.
It's something that has people who live there worried as well.