FLY CREEK _ Eighteen members of the Fly Creek Volunteer Fire Company completed basic fire training Saturday, bringing a level of closure to a period of uncertainty about fire protection that has beleaguered residents of the fire district for more than two years.

The fire company members completed a 27-hour course "Scene Support Operations" which provides an introduction to equipment usage and prepares members for responding to incidents and conducting operations outside of a structure, said Lyle "Butch" Jones, Otsego County Emergency Services Coordinator.

"We’re officially up and going," said board chairman and firefighter Richard Carr. While the company won’t have firefighters who can go inside burning structures until advanced training concludes in the spring, the company will "be able to respond and at least put water on the fire," Carr said.

Carr said nine members of the company have completed first responder training and that two members are taking EMT courses.

As of the last count, members of the new fire company have taken 1,900 hours of training and responded to 11 calls, he said.

Carr said the department has two good line officers in chief Alan Thayer and assistant chief George Hymas and that things have shaped up nicely during the long training period.

"We’re in pretty good shape," he said.

The establishment of a working fire company brings about an end to a process that began back in December 2004, when Mark Weir was overwhelmingly elected as a fire commissioner.

Weir came to the position seeking to make the fire district more accountable and open to the public. Members of the fire department and his fellow commissioners did not take kindly to his probes, and the board voted to censure him for speaking to the press in the spring of 2005.

In June, public resentment about the situation exploded at a packed meeting in the fire halls’ engine bay. Residents wanted answers to

various questions they had about the district’s handling of finances and actions towards Weir and treasurer Betty Staffin, but left dissatisfied with the meeting.

The situation simmered throughout the summer, eventually resulting in the resignations of chairwoman Patty Pernat and commissioner Patricia Rhyde. Commissioner Dean Colby’s term expired that year and he did not seek reelection in December, resulting in three new commissioners being elected to join Weir: Wolfgang Merk, Edward Kukenberger and Carr.

Julie Pernat resigned after the election and Margaret Wolff was appointed to fill the remaining year of her term.

The almost entirely-new board said they wanted to work with the Fly Creek Volunteer Fire Department to rebuild and resolve the tension. Relations quickly soured however in February when chief George Chandler told the commissioners that his remaining firefighters had an "I don’t care" attitude about responding to calls that weren’t regarding their own houses.

In March, the fire commissioners met with the Cooperstown village board of trustees to discuss contracting with the village for fire protection, a move which would have effectively severed ties with the Fly Creek Volunteer Fire Department.

Two days after that meeting at the district’s monthly meeting, the remaining members of the fire department resigned and removed the plaques, trophies and memorabilia from the fire hall.

In May, the fire district signed a contract with the village of Cooperstown for fire coverage through December 2006 while a new fire company was formed and its members trained.

While the new department is gradually becoming independent, Jones said they are still working closely with Cooperstown and the county.

"It’s sad what the department and community had to go through," said Jones, whose office has been working with the commissioners throughout the process. "(But) the outcome here is great. You’ve got a great bunch of people working together to improve their skills and knowledge. They certainly are demonstrating the community there."

Weir _ who joined the new company as a support firefighter and first responder _ said the end result is terrific.

"Everybody’s working hard to get this community back in shape," he said. "We’ve got a great chief and a lot of good firemen and individuals willing to give their time."