Kings County ends fire services in the city of Avenal over community center dispute

County, metropolis astatine likelihood implicit information of lawsuit planned astatine Avenal Community Center

HANFORD, Calif. (KFSN) -- The Kings County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously Saturday to state a nationalist information exigency and extremity the county's occurrence services declaration with the metropolis of Avenal.

The 5-0 determination came during an exigency gathering called to code what region officials said was a menace to nationalist safety.

County leaders said the determination followed a determination by Kings County Fire Chief John Chamberlin, who is besides serving arsenic occurrence main for the metropolis of Avenal, that a gathering astatine the Avenal Community Center is unsafe to occupy. The assemblage halfway is inactive nether construction.

Despite that determination, the region said the metropolis of Avenal has scheduled an lawsuit astatine the assemblage halfway and concluded the gathering is harmless to occupy.

The region besides noted that the metropolis has adopted a section ordinance creating its ain occurrence section and has hired a occurrence chief.

As portion of Saturday's action, the committee voted to terminate the occurrence services statement with the city, effectual astatine 5 p.m. connected Saturday.