CROSS LANES, WV (WOWK) – Every minute matters when responding to emergencies, but when several firefighters resigned from Tyler Mountain Volunteer Fire Department last month, questions arose about how the department would continue operations and move forward.

With the help of already existing mutual aid programs, Tyler Mountain’s response to emergencies continued without distributions, according to the department.

One month later, the department is receiving several new applications for firefighter positions. Six new people have applied to the department within the last month, and two of the firefighters who resigned last month are back on staff.

Assistant Chief Thomas Robinson said several more have expressed interest in joining the department.

Thanks for signing up!

Watch for us in your inbox.

Subscribe Now

Breaking News

“They said that they miss helping the community, and they’ve heard about some of the positive changes we are doing. We’ve been continuing to do training. We’re continuing to get more people to join outside of that group of people as well,” Robinson said.

James McDougle, the president of the Board of Directors at Tyler Mountain Fire Department, said that membership is going up at the Fire Department. At the time of the resignations, seven firefighters’ resignations were accepted, though ten firefighters’ names were originally listed on the resignation letters.

Their reason for resignation: complaints about the culture at the department.

Robinson said, “We are definitely trying to navigate any complaint that folks have. We are very open about things, and we are open to change. I’m not always going to say I’m 100% right, but nothing will be malicious. We would never do something on purpose to hurt people or do something wrong. If somebody does have an idea that makes things better for the fire department or the community, then we will make those changes.”

Now, the goal is propelling the volunteer department forward to continue serving the community with the utmost safety in mind.

“We’re looking to continuing to do some additional training to help the firefighters and make sure they have what they need to respond to calls, and just continue to improve on that culture of safety and everyone looking out for each person, so making sure this remains a family environment like it always has been in the past,” board member and firefighter Jason Caltrider said.

Robinson added that the implementation of new training is how they’re hoping to change the culture overall.

“We still have strived to have a change in culture, and that change is a change in safety. We want to keep our community safe but we also want to keep our firefighters safe. So, we have firefighters who respond to emergencies to help people,” Robinson said. “That, and the way we do that is through continued training, stuff we teach in-house and with some people to other classes as well. Having spotters for them when we back into the firehouse, and again, continuous training.”

The next board meeting will be at 7 p.m. on Thursday, July 25. During that meeting, new applications will be reviewed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WOWK 13 News.