Shaler's Undercliff fire department suspends 5 members suspected of answering call impaired

Five volunteer firefighters in Shaler are accused of responding to a call under the influence of alcohol, officials with the township and Undercliff Volunteer Fire Company confirmed.

The fire department suspended the five members on Aug. 8, Undercliff President John Klocko Sr. said.

The department is accelerating its internal review process, which could culminate at a meeting next week of its membership where the firefighters involved could be expelled.

“We believe there was an infraction,” Klocko said. “We don’t know the extent of how much. It’s being investigated.”

The concern stems from an Aug. 2 call on East Genessee Avenue.

The call ended up being a false alarm. There was a report of an odor of smoke inside a house, but nothing was found, said Kasey Reigner, a spokeswoman with the Allegheny County Department of Emergency Services.

The county was not aware of other concerns or issues being raised with the response to the call, Reigner said.

No injuries or damages were reported.

Shaler police officers at the scene were not made aware of any concern, and no one has filed a complaint with police, police Chief Sean Frank said. Footage from body cameras worn by officers at the scene was being reviewed.

A resident filed an anonymous complaint with the township that firefighters at the call may have been under the influence, said Tim Rogers, who until Aug. 12 was serving as Shaler’s manager consultant, stepping down after assistant Manager Judith Kording was promoted to manager that day.

The township took the concern to the fire department, which already knew and had taken action, Rogers said.

The township’s concern, Rogers said, is that the township insures the fire department’s equipment.

“It’s important to us to know it’s being operated in a safe and efficient manner,” Rogers said.

Seven Undercliff firefighters responded to the call with two vehicles. The five under suspension were on one of them, Klocko said.

The department’s line officers and then its board of directors will take up the issue before it goes to the department’s full membership, where a two-thirds vote would be required to expel any of the members, Klocko said.

“For every action, there’s a reaction that the department has to face, and they are doing it head-on,” he said.

Klocko does not want the incident to reflect poorly on the department’s other members who train and work hard, and fundraise, to protect and serve their community.

“We are dealing with it. We are serious about it,” he said. “This has never happened to us before.”