Neighboring City Proposes Hiring Laid-Off Detroit Firefighters

Detroit – Hamtramck leaders pitched an unusual proposal to Detroit officials Tuesday to help address the city’s struggling Fire Department.

The idea, Nevrus Nazarko, Hamtramck acting city manager told council members, is that the city would hire recently laid-off Detroit firefighters to provide service to a three-square-mile area adjacent to Hamtramck.

“New financial realities force us to think outside the box,” Nazarko said.

Like Detroit, which recently laid off dozens of firefighters, elected officials in cash-strapped Hamtramck are scrambling to cut costs in the city’s public safety departments. Earlier this summer, the city’s police unions agreed to concessions that resulted in a reorganization of officers.

Using federal grant dollars, Detroit was able to rehire many of the firefighters. Hamtramck leaders hope to tap into grant money to hire additional staff to cover a swath of Detroit bordered by Interstate 75, McNichols, Mound and just north of Carpenter.

Details about funding, the number of firefighters Hamtramck would hire and additional training needed were not discussed during the presentation.

“I think this is definitely a concept at least worth taking seriously,” said Detroit Council President Charles Pugh.

The proposal will be taken under consideration by the public health committee and law department.