January 23, 2026

Police Raid Summerdale Fire Department

By Rick McCann
Blue RAM Media/Gulf Coast News

January 23, 2026

SUMMERDALE, Ala. Some firefighters and residents of Summerdale are calling what happened at around midnight Friday a raid and a breach of trust. Others are now questioning the legality and intent of the action. Others have even said that is was a political stunt.

Two Summerdale police officers, under the direction of their police chief and under an order of Summerdale Mayor Randy Farris, entered the town’s main fire station located on County Road 32, and demanded to know who was currently at the fire house.

Police were also instructed to seize a documentation of the sign-in log of the fire department.”

There were rumors that police took pictures of the firefighters that happened to be at the fire station when officers arrived.

“Please quit calling this a raid,” said Summerdale Mayor Randy Farris at a special-called town council meeting Thursday afternoon. “We have a right. It is town property, and we have the right to inspect that.”
Farris said that he had heard that people were “living” at the firehouse which raised several concerns including legal issues. It’s an order he now calls a mistake.

Summerdale Fire Chief Reed Moss said that his firefighters now feel violated, and targeted and they don’t know why this incident happened.

Volunteer firefighters nationwide are sometimes assigned shifts and spend their time at the fire station to expedite getting to the emergency calls.

Since the unannounced “inspection” the reason for sending the police to check on firefighters have changed several times but whatever the reason was, it has come with a lot of backlash not only from Summerdale firefighters and town residents, but firefighters throughout the county.

Tim is a volunteer at an area fire department where they continue to see a substantial call volume increase annually and sometimes he and his fellow firefighters stay at their firehouse watching TV, eating, talking or cleaning and stocking the apparatus. The fire chief is aware of it and there’s never been an issue, Tim said.

Volunteers at busy fire stations often prepare meals together and stay busy at the firehouse waiting for the next callout, especially on the weekends when calls come more frequently.

“Mistakes were made on both sides,” added Farris. “So, we are trying to resolve that and understand that we want the best for our fire department and for our little town of Summerdale.”

“We are still here to serve, haven’t missed a single call,” said Moss. “We are trying to appease the town as much as we can.”

The mayor said that he’ll be meeting with the fire chief in the coming days.