The Atlanta Fire Department is down close to 200 firefighters as they leave for better and safer jobs.
Fire stations have to double up shifts to keep the stations functioning, according to 11Alive.com Firefighters said it is reaching a breaking point.
"I will invest my time in the city as long as I know the city will invest in me," Firefighter Tica Flores told city council members this week. "There are a lot of risk factors. I know that. I choose to come to do this job anyway," she said.
One unexpected problem that has arisen is offers from trucking companies willing to pay higher wages and offering safer jobs to firefighters with commercial licenses.
Firefighter Union President Nate Bailey told city council members that the trucking industry is headhunting his members.
"They’re leaving every week. And it’s because of the pay," he told council members.
The shrinking department has a trickle down effect on homeowners.
An insurance expert at Georgia State University told 11Alive.com that insurance rates for Atlanta property owners would rise if a national rating agency downgraded Atlanta’s fire protection ranking due to short staff.
