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>"Mutual Aid " by local Fire Departments

>In fact anonymous is incorrect in his/her statment about our fire department responding on a first call basis to other towns. All of the surrounding towns have their own fire departments and only request “mutual aid” from Ridgewood FD when they have a fire that requires additional resources above and beyond what they have available. Just as the Ridgewood FD makes requests to those towns volunteer fire departments when they have a problem that requires additional resources. These agreements are in effect to protect the property and lives of the residents of all towns involved. The definition of “mutual aid” is that both parties have the same relationship with one another for assistance. In fact the Ridgewood Fire Department responds to very few of these calls per year (Probably around 1% of total call volume). I saw on the blog just today that there was a fire on Washington Place. What is not seen in the photos is that there are at least three other fire departments assisting Ridgewood’s fire department. I drove by and saw Ramsey’s fire department there as well as on my way home saw the Hohokus and Allendale fire departments at our fire headquarters. I wonder whether they should charge Ridgewood for their services for this small fire? It is my hope that the residents who read this blog and comments realize that we residents are lucky that we have some of the best public safety services in the area. There are some towns around us that have a hard time just getting an ambulance to a sick person and a fire truck to a fire most of the time. Thanks for your time and letting me clarify this error.

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Anti Goverment Grumblings ,Who me?

>Anti Government Grumblings, Who me…

As some of you know the Ridgewood blog has made the Ridgewood News. In this piece the Ridgewood News has accused the blog of “anti government grumblings” . Well, if that means that some people in town are a little annoyed by the seeming lack of accountability of elected and appointed officials, then yes it is antigovernment it is. There was also an accusation made that people should stop complaining and get involved. Funny I don’t recall anyone asking me if II know who the posters are? I can assure you that many of the posters do attend meetings, run for office, work for the village or just pay taxes here. Many are old time residents that are getting a bit disturbed by the direction our Village has been going in the last dozen years or so. Many residents are starting to feel they are being made a fool of. Many think the town is run by a group of insiders that no longer has the Village’s best interests at heart. And finally and most importantly it’s about respect. Do you think the town is getting the respect it deserves? There was a time when Ridgewood had the best of everything and there was no town more admired than ours. If we did it everyone wanted to be like us .Yes that’s right everyone wanted to be like Ridgewood. We didn’t live in New Jersey we lived in Ridgewood. We had the best schools, the most active and interested residents, and the cleanest and safest streets. But alas I am not so sure that the same can still be said. Well as I have said before everyone is invited to participate by sending us your thoughts, comments or complaints. The blog is trying to give voice to local issues that often go unnoticed in out busy lives.

James Foytlin