Pennsylvania’s growing shortage of volunteer and career firefighters and EMS providers has reached a point where state lawmakers are calling for action to avert a crisis like the one Rep. Stephen Barrar described at a Monday news conference.
“How would you feel if you had a fire or an accident or a life-threatening emergency and when you dialed 911, no one responded? These type of doomsday scenarios are not far-fetched,” said Barrar, R-Delaware County, who chairs the House Veterans Affairs and Emergency Preparedness Committee. “If this trend continues, there may be a day when no one is there to respond to your call for help.”
Standing before a line of emergency responders and supportive Republican and Democratic House members outside the state Capitol, Barrar urged his House colleagues to pass a package of 23 bills aimed at addressing the wellbeing of emergency responders and providing incentives to recruit and maintain volunteer and career firefighters.