Community Leaders Decry Fire Station Cuts

New York, NY —

Community leaders want the Fire Department to spare their neighborhood fire stations from service cuts. One of them is on City Island in the Bronx. Kenneth Kearns, District Manager of Community Board 10 in the Bronx, says back-up help would have a hard time getting to City Island in an emergency.

KEARNS: They would have to contend with two bridges one of which is a draw bridge that opens and closes for maritime traffic and the other is the city island bridge]

REPORTER: But Fire Commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta, says there are hardly ever fires on City Island. He says the fire station there is the least active in the city. Half of night shifts will be slashed at four fire stations around New York, including Lower Manhattan, Bushwick, and Staten Island.