(PIONEER) - People in Pioneer are waking up with serious questions about whether fire and EMS crews will be there if the next emergency call comes in.
A major walkout during a village council meeting has left the community's fire department facing a staffing crisis after Fire Chief Rodger Swank demanded Assistant Chief Tyler Williams be restored to full authority.
Swank told council members, "My recommendation is that Tyler Williams is reinstated to full capacity, not in a probationary manner, as assistant fire chief. If not reinstated tonight, I will be submitting my resignation."
Village leaders did not act on the request.
Within minutes, about a dozen firefighters set down their pagers and walked out of the meeting, saying the decision came after months of repeated overreach by the mayor into department operations.
Firefighters who left say the conflict had been building for more than a year and had reached a point where they believed they had to make a stand for the department.
The walkout is especially significant because the department was already operating below normal staffing levels before the meeting.
Residents are now left waiting to learn how fire and EMS protection will be handled moving forward, as village leaders work to stabilize coverage after the mass resignation threat.