Firefighters crowded the Payson Town Council chambers Tuesday, Jan. 8 to show their approval for an agreement that would merge Payson, Houston Mesa and Hellsgate fire departments. “Hellsgate firefighters are in favor. I can say that with full confidence,” said John Wisner, chief of Hellsgate Fire. Both Wisner and Payson Fire Chief David Staub are also in favor of creating the Rim Country Fire and Medical Authority — a name chosen by firefighters for the new fire department. “We are not silos, we are interconnected,” Staub said. “We deploy like a single entity, but we run with different chiefs.” The chiefs argued joint training and operations would make firefighting both safer and more effective.