Unity — With the entire eight-person volunteer fire department’s resignations to take effect on April 29, the Selectboard is making plans to ensure adequate fire and ambulance coverage until a new department can be organized.

On Monday, the board discussed the situation with Phil Tirrell, chief of Southwestern New Hampshire District Fire Mutual Aid. Tirrell agreed to schedule a meeting with the fire chiefs from four of Unity’s neighboring towns: Charlestown, Claremont, Newport and Lempster. The meeting is tentatively scheduled for Monday, April 24.

Selectboard Chairman Ed Gregory said the board expects some “downtime” and is looking for area towns to act as “first responders” until a new department is ready to answer calls.

“We just want to make sure people are covered,” he said. “We have to move forward.”

Tirrell said he is certain other departments would be willing to help, but the first step is a meeting with the chiefs.

“We can go over protocol to make sure this goes as smooth as possible,” Tirrell said.

Unity Fire Department members announced at the end of Town Meeting on March 18 that they would resign after voters approved a petition article giving the Selectboard the authority to appoint the chief and firefighters. The new format takes effect in 2018. The chief currently is selected by firefighters.

At the Selectboard’s March 27 meeting, Fire Chief Bruce Baker and Assistant Chief Robert Noll promised “a smooth transition,” according to meeting minutes.

When the board asked for a plan, Baker said most of the members wanted to leave before the organizational change in 2018. The Selectboard then requested a definitive date in writing so it could plan for continuing fire service. At that point, according to the minutes, Baker and Noll left the meeting but returned a short time later. They presented the board with a resignation letter saying, “Since the vote at Town Meeting regarding the organization of the fire department, we have received resignations from all members of the fire department. After our discussions with you last Monday and today, the membership of the fire department has voted to accept these resignations, with a tentative effective date of April 29,” the March 27 minutes said.

Gregory said that the current members would be willing to stay on a little longer, beyond April 29, if need be.

The town has started advertising for EMTs and firefighters with experience, Gregory said, and a few people have expressed their interest.

“By the 29th, we should have some applications,” Gregory said.

Patrick O’Grady can be reached at pogclmt@gmail.com.

Patrick O'Grady covers Claremont and Newport for the Valley News. He can be reached at pogclmt@gmail.com