In the weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas & New Year’s, I received several text messages about major fires and often activated the live scanner feed app on my phone to listen to different cities operate. As the incidents were brought under control, the app remained on as background noise. Still, many of the responses caught my attention and took me back to conversations that were had at several meetings that I attended during 2021.
At the various gatherings, fire service leaders agreed that the fire service’s mission continues to evolve, and departments truly have become all-hazards service providers. The deeper that those discussions went, the more that it was determined that communities often don’t realize the value of their local firehouse and the personnel.
A quick review of some of the fire dispatches that I heard over the app were: lockouts; water leaks; board-up for an opening after a previous crime; investigation of a sound in the attic that the caller thought was “possibly a smoke alarm”; assistance for a driver who was unable to pump gas; and check on a dog in vacant house.
Many times, such calls can be handled by dedicated professionals, such as a locksmith, apartment maintenance or animal control, but people know that when they call 9-1-1, they’ll get the fire department quickly to come to their aid and to fix their problem without question—or cost.
Although these service calls do serve members of the community, they take away from important time that firefighters need for their existing tasks, such as building inspection, community risk outreach, training, and apparatus and equipment maintenance. For many volunteer departments, the service calls affect the retention of members.
During the pandemic, fire companies were utilized for testing sites and vaccination clinics, which elevated the fire department’s presence in the community.
As departments have assumed the all-hazards mission, they have had to adjust their daily schedules and reprioritize their growing list of tasks. However, for most departments, staffing has remained flat, and budgets haven’t increased.
This is where departments and chiefs must spend time to educate citizens and community leaders about the costs of running fire departments in 2022. Equipment isn’t cheap and time is limited, and yet, members continue to answer calls, no matter what the request is—and they don’t leave until the problem is solved.
They say politics is local, and despite the terrific federal fire service grant programs, many fire departments still lack even basic equipment and training because of limited local funding. Taking action by engaging in candid conversations with local government officials and regional representatives and highlighting all of the services and support that the department provides on an annual basis will illustrate to those who hold the purse strings the need for those individuals to provide more assistance where it really is needed. The trickle-down effect of helping fund or staff a fire department increases the community’s safety and provides solutions for those unexpected situations that no other agency or business will handle—and that raising awareness is one more task that you must find the time to do in your already busy schedules.
2022 Firehouse conferences
Our team is finalizing the rollout of our two top-notch conferences for this year.
The Station Design Conference will take place May 24–26 in Rosemont, IL. The growing conference provides fire departments with a deep understanding of what’s needed when they plan a new fire station, from design trends and safety, to technology, budgeting and best practices. Check fhstationdesign.com for the Station Design Conference program.
Firehouse Expo returns to Columbus, OH, this fall. All dates for the event have been updated. It will take place Sept. 26–30. The new Monday–Friday format will better meet the needs of attendees and vendors. We aren’t taking anything away from the event and will offer new sessions, roundtables, and more educational and networking experiences with vendors. The schedule will be finalized by the end of January, so check FirehouseExpo.com for the latest and take advantage of the early-registration discounts.
