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Chattanooga Report: Need More Firefighters, More Stations
JACQUELINE KOCH
Chattanooga Times Free Press
The Chattanooga Fire Department lacks the personnel and fire stations to meet national standards now, let alone if the city annexes new property, according to a report by the International Association of Firefighters.
"We're not saying we're doing anything unsafe," said Capt. Rusty Rymer, secretary-treasurer of the association's Local 820. "We feel like everything we do is safe. It would be nice to be fully staffed so we could be safer."
National Fire Protection Agency standards dictate that the first firefighter must be on a scene within four minutes of being dispatched and that 15 firefighters should be there within eight minutes.
But most Chattanooga engine companies operate with three firefighters -- four at most -- meaning more trucks must respond to meet that quota.
The city now employs 72 firefighters per 24-hour shift, with a total of 216 in the department. Proposed staffing levels would add 50 firefighters per shift, raising the staff to 366.
Maps included in the association's report show that fire companies from 17 stations can reach 60.3 percent of the city's roads in four minutes. Another map shows that 89.4 percent of roads can be reached in eight minutes from all 17 stations, excluding areas in Big Ridge and East Brainerd.
"What this study basically says is that the city is not adequately covered in that eight-minute time frame," Capt. Rymer said.
The report proposes adding three fire stations to increase the four-minute percentage to 62 percent and the eight-minute percentage to 91.4. The stations could be at the intersections of Jenkins and Shallowford roads, Cassandra Smith and Hamill roads and Mimosa Circle and Swan Road.
It also suggests adding personnel so that each fire truck company has at least four firefighters. That way, fewer trucks would have to respond to reach the target of 15 firefighters.
Chief Randy Parker said the department was addressing the issues raised in the report before its release. A training academy set to begin in early November will adding at least 30 firefighters, he said, and another academy could be held if needed next year.
The city's plan for services for annexation includes building stations in Hixson, East Brainerd and Tiftonia. A groundbreaking ceremony is occurring today for a station at Enterprise South.
"We're low on people right now because we're getting ready to hire and we're doing training right now," Chief Parker said. "We're like everyone else. People are in training, they go on vacation, they retire."
Mayor Ron Littlefield said he appreciates Local 820's interest in expanding the fire department and that the report's suggestions match the goal of annexation.
The mayor said staffing patterns have been consistent and the department has maintained its Class 2 ISO rating, the second-highest fire protection rating issued, during his administration.
"I'm happy that they want to see the department grow, which is exactly what the whole annexation program is about," he said. "I look forward to seeing the annexation program help us to add to the services, including the fire service, that are needed for a progressive urban area."
Mr. Rymer gave the report to Chattanooga City Council members Tuesday night.
Councilwoman Pam Ladd, chairwoman of the council's Public Safety Committee, said she would read over the report. She said she was not sure if it would come up again within the council's committee.
"It may spur me to ask more questions," she said. "We don't want to overlook anything."
Staff writer Cliff Hightower contributed to this story.
Copyright 2009 Chattanooga Publishing Company
September 30, 2009
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Mak FF5 on
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The biggest issue I have with the whole annexation on this city is that the members of the volunteer departments will be lost and have in no way asked them to try out for the CFD. The three volunteer departments affected will lose many firefighters if not completely dismantle a department. If the CFD were to give firefighters with the affected departments a shot, better yet a offer to hire them, I know I would not be in such an uproar. Further more, the current stations and placement of apparatus is almost a death sentence to folks in the affected areas. If a MVC w/entrapment occured at any far reaching area of the proposed area the best time for arrival of a CFD sqaud would be 20 minutes(personal opinion), when the local departments can smash that time even with an extremely slow arrival time of 10 minutes. Another issue is the track record of the cities promises and actuall work being done. It took the city of Chattanooga 30 years to fulfill its promise of adding sewers to the previosuly annexed areas. The promise now is to have the new stations,firemen,and apparatus in place within the next 3 years and honestly I for one do not see this happening.
What I'm trying to say is leave the very dedicated volunteer departments and their coverage area and citizens alone or offer to hire many of those departments firefighters!
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Permalink Reply by John Crabbe on
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Well first of all, can the volly depts being taken over show that they have the same staffing and meet the same requirements as the proposed annexation can? Thing is many volly depts do struggle with meeting enough staffing, especially during normal work hours. In many cases a career dept can offer a higher level of service.
As for hiring the volunteers affected, yeah I don't agree with that. Just because they may lose FF's or a dept is dismantled is no reason for a dept to just hire those folks without them having to go through the same hiring standards everyone else went through to get on the CFD. If they are hiring 30 in the next hiring process and looking to boost the numbers, those vollys would have a fair shake of getting hired, but they should still go through the hiring process. It doesn't really matter if someone was a volunteer and sees their area get annexed, the CFD will have their own training, their own academy and so forth, they will do things their own way.
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Im not saying they should be hired and not have training at the CFD.I cant speak for dallas bay or 58 but I can speak for Tri-Comm and we do have the stafifng even during the day to compare with CFD. We have 2-5 live-in residents at all 4 stations and are a class 4-ISO department. Tri-Comm has been around for ages and even started the other 2 departments in question and has spawned many CFD firefighters and many return to volunteer.
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Permalink Reply by blair4630 on
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I agree that it's CFD's department, so anyone coming in to there should have to go through their training, however given the special circumstances I would say, in my opinion, that it is only fair to (this one time) bypass open applications and allow the members of the affected departments have first crack at the academy if they wish to do so.
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Permalink Reply by Timothy D. Stone Jr on
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Wow...Thats like 20 min up the rd from me...(Dade County Ga.) I should look into what they require ect...
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Also my views and opinions are that of my own and do not reflect that of the Tri-Community Volunteer Fire Department!
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Permalink Reply by Ben Waller on
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When annexation occurs, the city doing the annexation has the right to recruit and hire emergency services personnel that meet their standards. They have no obligation to hire volunteers from an area being annexed unless there is a contract or a law that requires it.
If the volunteers want to be hired by the career department, they need to make sure that they are in the top strata of the potential recruits for the city department. Being the best qualified is the best way to be hired. There's no "gimme" based on previous volunteer experience.
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I wasnt trying to say they should get a gimmie.Im just saying they should get first crack. I know a lot of the volunteers wont even apply to CFD but some will.I for one have and hope to get lucky and get hired!
When it comes down to it I'm just personally upset because the station i work at seems to be on the chopping block aswell as most of our coverage area.They will most likely contract with us like they already do but that doesnt mean i cant be upset!
Plus the only reason they are annexing is for the upcoming census so the city can get more government money. It has nothing to do with providing better services.
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Annexations are virtually always about increasing local revenues, but with Enterprise South going in, the career stations will help the city's ISO rating. That will make it more attractive for industry that supports VW to move locally, and it will make it more attractive for businesses that provide services to VW or its suppliers, as the extra taxes they pay will be more than offset by the reduction in fire insurance premiums. The same goes for other businesses affected by the improvement in the ISO rating.
Why should the city give volunteers a "first crack" at being hired when they're taking over a service area?
Chances are that you would be stationed downtown or in some other area, not in one of the new Enterprise South stations anyway. You haven't provided any evidence that your departments volunteers offer anything to the city that they can't get by hiring and training people with no experience.
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So how is being given "first crack" not really a gimme? So a more qualified outsider who tests higher and scores better should not be considered because they are an outsider so the volies being "affected" can have the first crack? Sorry I don't buy it. As Ben says, if looking to be hired they should be at the top of potential recruits, just because you are a volly in the affected area shouldn't matter any more than someone else testing for the same spot.
What being a volly in the affected area does help with is that you do have a knowledge of the area, you have an understanding of the population, target hazards, infrastructures and so forth, of which can help boost the chances of getting hired. But to say they should have a first crack just because their volly dept may be annexed doesn't mean squat.
The issue is not what the volunteer FF think they should have or how things should be, it is up to the governing body also being annexed. If the town board etc see annexation as an improvement and can upgrade services and so forth, then it really isn't about the volunteer FF. You can make a gripe to the the governing body about your concerns, but there should be no reason the CFD should have to give any volunteers first crack at getting hired. Again as Ben mentions the only issues that should be considered is if there is a contract or law requiring the CFD to hire on volunteers.
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CFD is an ISO Class 2 with fully career staffing. They don't have to depend upon volunteers, whether live-in or not. CFD has 17 stations, Tri-Comm has 4. There's no way Tri-Comm's staffing compares to CFDs.
Being around for ages isn't pertinent to the discussion.
Neither is starting the other two volly departments, who BTW were founded to cover areas that Tri-Comm pulled out of due to not being able to cover them adequately.
CFD is chartered to protect whatever is within the city limits. How an annexation affects a volly department outside the annexed area is not their problem, nor is it a the problem of their taxpayers or business owners.
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Why would that be fair at all? The depts may be affected by an annexation. so what, why should the CFD have to bypass applications and allow vollies first crack at getting hired? It makes no sense. If the vollies want to get hired then they have to show they are in the top percentile of applicants.
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