Fire chief details $275,514 in cuts ahead of override vote

Town Meeting 2026-05-12 Part 2 · Meeting of May 12, 2026

Abington Fire Chief Glenn warns an ambulance could go out of service without an override. Addressing Town Meeting on International Firefighters Day, Glenn said the department has already cut $275,514 to reach a level-funded budget while trying to preserve two staffed, independently active ambulances. He said a $380,000 warrant article for expired protective equipment was pulled two years ago in favor of grants, and that the department supplements a roughly $7,000 state SAFE grant for school fire education out of its own funds.

Glenn said the department brings in about $1.4 million a year in ambulance insurance revenue for the general fund and handles 4,000 to 4,500 calls annually with two ambulances and six-person shifts, versus one ambulance covering about 1,000 calls a year in the 1970s with the same staffing. "It's a very scary thing," Glenn said, warning that without an override, staffing gaps could force one ambulance out of service.

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Source: the Town Meeting 2026-05-12 Part 2 meeting of May 12, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.