The Poland Volunteer Fire Company will remain closed after Herkimer County Supreme Court Justice Mark Rose dismissed its lawsuit against the Poland Joint Fire District this week, ending — at least for now — the department's bid to resume responding to calls after more than a century of service in the area.
Justice Rose's ruling, issued Monday, found that the fire commissioners' actions in suspending the company were fair and legal, according to WKTV. The station reports that the judge cited months of documented concerns in his decision, including an incident in which police had to remove a lock to access department records, and found that the fire company's failures had affected public safety.
The judge also ruled that the Poland Joint Fire District did not have to give public notice before passing the resolution that suspended the company, the station's report notes. That finding addressed one of the core legal questions in the case: New York Town Law §176 generally requires notice of an amended or terminated fire-protection contract to explain why the change is being made.
How the Dispute Started
The fight traces back to Aug. 19, 2025, when the Poland Joint Fire District resolved to suspend its relationship with the Poland Fire Company, remove it from the 911 call list and deny it the right to provide fire protection, according to a petition filed in the case and hosted by firelawblog.com. The petition states that the Poland Fire Company had been the exclusive provider of primary fire protection in the district for more than 122 years and had 44 members at the time of the suspension, including 12 interior firefighters and 17 exterior firefighters.
The petition also alleges that response times, particularly in the Town of Ohio, more than doubled once the district began relying on fire companies from outside the district — an allegation from the fire company's own legal filing that has not been independently adjudicated. District Commissioner Chair Andrew Topham, meanwhile, told the Rome Sentinel that the decision stemmed from extended response times, low membership, poor retention, missing insurance-related documents and inadequate training and qualification records.
Neighboring Departments Step In
To fill the coverage gap, the Poland Joint Fire District temporarily secured fire protection services from the Newport, Barneveld, Remsen and Deerfield volunteer fire departments, per the same Rome Sentinel account. At a public hearing, Vice Chair Ralph Potasiewicz said the arrangement would let crews respond immediately rather than waiting six or seven minutes for a response from the Poland Fire Company, according to WKTV's coverage of that hearing.
The district had also proposed contracts with Deerfield, Newport, Remsen and Trenton under which those neighboring districts would supply personnel and equipment, with a generalized total cost of $11,200 and responding agencies paid $250 per call, reduced to $100 if an agency is turned back before arrival. The Poland Joint Fire District itself was formed in October 2017 and covers the towns of Ohio, Newport, Norway and Russia along with the villages of Poland and Cold Brook, the Rome Sentinel reports.
Residents Have Voiced Concerns
The disruption has not gone unnoticed locally. Residents told Citizen Portal that the town's ISO rating had increased because of reduced local fire protection, and multiple community members raised concerns during public comment, urging town officials to ensure adequate coverage moving forward.
What Comes Next
The legal fight isn't entirely over. A counterclaim from the Poland Joint Fire District remains active, reportedly centered on equipment still held by the fire company, and a conference on that matter is scheduled for Dec. 17, WKTV reports. As Flack Broadcasting first reported, the ruling means the Poland Volunteer Fire Company will stay closed for the foreseeable future, leaving the district's temporary coverage arrangement in place as the equipment dispute heads toward resolution this winter.
