The fate of Station 6 of the Meridian Fire Department seems to be sealed. Discussions on moving or doing away with certain stations to help cut costs while still providing adequate emergency coverage throughout the city have been ongoing for years but recently the issue has grown.

    As far back as 2003, officials with the Mississippi Insurance Rating Bureau in Jackson advised Meridian city officials Station 6 needed to be closed. Ever since then the topic of Station 6 has come and gone as city and fire administrators have struggled against an increasingly stubborn economy.

    Now with such expenses as gas and diesel prices rising and the loss of more than 20 firemen to other jobs and fire departments, Meridian Fire Department Chief Anthony Clayton, Mayor Cheri Barry and members of the Meridian City Council must start looking at the Station 6 issue in earnest.

    Clayton said officials with the Mississippi Insurance Rating Bureau have told Meridian officials Station 6 is basically a redundant station and does not figure into their fire safety classification process. Clayton said Station 1, located at 2500 14th Street, and Station 7, located at 910 North Hills Street, can adequately cover the residents within the area of operations currently covered by Station 6. He said drills monitored by his department and city administrators have proven this fact

    “Last week we did response time drills with one and seven and found the run times were only slightly longer and well within guidelines for fire and rescue units,” said Barry. “Our main concerns are providing the best coverage for the residents while at the same time trying to address this issue.”

    Ward 3 Councilwoman Barbara Henson, who has been serving on the Meridian City Council for more than 20 years, has only recently been fielding questions concerning Station 6. She said Station 1 coming up 20th Street and Station 7 coming down State Boulevard from the north seem to provide good response times. She stressed it is her job and those of her fellow council members and city administrators to always keep the best interest and safety of the population in mind whenever considering these sometimes weighty decisions.

    “Somewhere down the line we are going to have to bite the bullet,” Henson said Friday. “We are going to have to move some stations, do away with one and build another in the northeast annex area. We also have to raise the pay for these firemen so we can keep them.”

    Freddie Miller is owner of Houswares, a shop located at 3316 20th St. Miller can throw a rock and hit the side of Station 6 just across 33rd Avenue. He said although Station 1 is further away, he didn’t see where the arrival time would be that much of an issue.

    “I really don’t see any difference in either station getting to my business,” Miller said.

    Over at 2120 30th Ave., Lottie Berry said from her front porch she has never had to call firemen to her home and hopes she never has to. But she knows one day they may have to respond to an emergency at her residence.

    “I live alone so I think every second counts when it comes to getting to an emergency,” Berry said. “It is a comfort knowing Station 6 is that close.”

    Clayton had advised his chiefs to come up with a plan that involved closing Station 6 as soon as today but Barry put a hold on that until the city administration could talk further with members of the city council, likely during a work session to be held March 9.

    “This affects a great many people,” Barry said. “We not only have issues with Station 6 but Station 2 and the new station in the northeast. We can’t be hasty in these decisions. They take a great deal of planning.”

    Barry said she wants to move these chess pieces around without the need to raise taxes in Meridian.

    “With the economy the way it is, gas prices going up, which means everything at the stores and shops will be rising, the last thing I want to do is put an even bigger financial burden on the people of Meridian,” Barry said.