LEWES, Del. - The Lewes Volunteer Fire Department is struggling to find new volunteers because the cost of housing in Lewes is so high. While some volunteers live in Lewes, many do not live in city limits. The department says response times could be affected if more and more volunteers have to live far from the station.
Ed Rush has been a volunteer with the fire department for three years. Rush lives out of town, and explained to CoastTV why so many other volunteers are in the same position as him.
"We tend to live further away from downtown, where the houses are a little more affordable, but the further out you go, the longer it takes to get to the fire house to respond to alarms."
Allowing volunteers to qualify for affordable housing, could possibly help the staffing issue. A number of volunteers also work two jobs.
Rush said, "Some people have to have two jobs in order to live in the area, and have families, it's just a big time commitment."
Additionally, there are hopes plans to renovate the existing bunkroom could incentivize more volunteers to stay the night and take calls from the station.
