KANSAS CITY, Kan. — The union representing firefighters in Kansas City, Kansas, said ongoing issues at the fire stations are "embarrassing at best" and need to be fixed.
Bob Wing, business manager for the International Association of Firefighters Local 64, brought the issues to a Unified Government committee meeting this week.
“It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure this out,” Wing said. “They let it go on so long now that it is a major problem."
Wing said it will cost a lot of money for repairs but that they are necessary. According to Wing, 15 of the 18 Kansas City, Kansas, Fire Department stations don’t currently meet code requirements.
“Nothing’s been done,” Wing said.
Officials have known about the issues since at least 2015, when a study found many fire stations needed significant upgrades.
According to Wing, the KCKFD station in Argentine has mold issues. The retaining wall at the station at North 81st Street and Leavenworth Road is still crumbling — a problem that 41 Action News first reported in spring 2018.
Wing said Station 20 at 78th Street and Kansas Avenue is structurally unsound, to the point where it could collapse.
Station 17 on South 51st Street has had critter problems. Wing said a raccoon fell through the ceiling in the eating area.
“We have wild animals falling through our ceilings in the middle of the night and they’re living in the attic and you know but don't do anything about it,” Wing said.
Although the Unified Government committee didn’t take any action on Wing’s concerns, he hopes the problems make it to the full Board of Commissioners.
“We are aware of the conditions of our fire stations, and we’re trying to diligently address that situation as we see as a priority,” KCKFD Assistant Fire Chief Morris Letcher said.
Letcher said waiting to do the repairs comes down to funding and contractor issues.
“Some things just take longer than others. The animal situation at Station 17, we immediately contacted animal control and the critter company to come in and rectify the problem,” Letcher said.
A timeline to make all the repairs is unknown, but Letcher said the fire department doesn’t take the issues lightly.
