Oct. 14—Staffing shortages, fueled in part by an increased number of sick days being taken by personnel, have led the Columbia Fire Department to occasionally take some fire engine trucks out of service and run other trucks with less manpower than normal, the department said.
Over two weeks earlier this month, at least one engine was removed from service on three separate days, the fire department confirmed.
However, veteran Fire Chief Aubrey Jenkins said the department has not had to take entire stations out of service, and the department has been able to effectively respond to incidents when needed.
The fire department, which covers Columbia and unincorporated Richland County, has 454 budgeted firefighter positions and 100 volunteers who supplement the ranks, per the department. There are currently 28 staff vacancies among the budgeted positions, though functional openings are likely higher because fire trainees count toward the department's workforce, Jenkins said.
Columbia firefighters typically work a 24 hour shift, then take two days off. On a typical day, per Jenkins, an individual fire engine truck is manned by four personnel — a company officer, a driver and two firefighters.
However, staffing levels lately have left the department scrambling at times. On days when the department has been critically short-staffed, some trucks are staffed with three people, rather than four.
The fire chief also acknowledged in a Tuesday statement that, because of an increase in the use of sick leave, stations at times have had to take individual fire engine trucks out of service for a shift because of staffing levels. He said that has occurred at stations that have two fire trucks, meaning only one of the two trucks at a given station run when those particularly deep staff shortages occur.
"So, if we run short, we just take the engine (truck) out of service, and the ladder (truck) continues to run," Jenkins told The State Wednesday.
The fire chief told The State that COVID-19 has played a role in some of the recent sick leave — he said there are some people in the department currently out with the coronavirus — though that doesn't account for the whole picture.
"We encourage people, if they are sick, not to come to work," Jenkins said. "Certainly, if they are sick they have the right to mark off. I don't question that."
The Columbia Firefighters Association is a chapter of the International Association of Firefighters, and represents nearly 200 of the firefighters in Columbia's ranks. It operates like a union, but does not collectively bargain contracts. It has recently been sharing fire staffing concerns on its Facebook page.
For example, on Oct. 9 it shared that two engine trucks were out of service that day — they used the term "closed" to describe the engine companies — and that some other trucks across the system were running with three people that day, rather than the customary four.
On at least three days in the last two weeks — Oct. 2, Oct. 3 and Oct. 9 — the association has posted on social media that one or more engines that normally would have been running were out of service. A fire department spokesman confirmed there were engines out of service on those dates.
Jenkins told The State he didn't believe the recent staffing issues have led to major issues responding to calls.
"Our people are good," said the chief, who has been with the fire department since 1979 and has been the chief for a decade. "They are second to none at what they do, with their abilities. And you know what? If you have three on a truck, they can call for another truck (to assist). That's their option. When we send units to a fire, we make sure we have enough people on the scene to do whatever needs to be done."
Jenkins said he went to a fire chiefs' conference recently and, based on discussions there, noted that staffing is not a problem unique to the Columbia department.
"I just pray for the day that we get through this pandemic stuff, and get back to some normalcy," Jenkins said.
Third-term Mayor Steve Benjamin said he is concerned about recent staffing issues at the fire department, and also said he wants more firefighters to get vaccinated against COVID-19.
"I will tell you the situation has become much more challenging in the wake of the pandemic," the mayor said. "Some of the challenges around vaccine hesitancy among city employees and the fire department give me great concern."
The mayor said he has "the utmost confidence" in Jenkins, calling him "one of the best fire chiefs in the country" and also commended Columbia firefighters for "running into the danger when we are running the opposite direction."
Staffing at the fire department has been a political talking point on the city campaign trail. Mayoral candidate Sam Johnson, for instance, has referred to engine companies that have been shuttered at times because of staffing on a given day. The Firefighters Association has endorsed his campaign for mayor.
However, in his Tuesday statement, Jenkins stressed that the department itself does not take political stances.
"CRFD remains politically neutral and does not officially support any candidate running for political office," Jenkins said. "We are here to fairly and equally serve each and every citizen and stakeholder that we are entrusted to protect."
___
(c)2021 The State (Columbia, S.C.)
Visit The State (Columbia, S.C.) at www.thestate.com
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
