Liberty fire chief and trustees discuss staffing
TweetAdding firefighters would reduce use of mutual aid, increase response time
LIBERTY
Gus Birch, township fire chief, told trustees the fire department needs more daily staffing to provide proper service to residents as the number of service calls increases.
There have been ongoing discussions between Birch and the trustees about aging apparatus and equipment that need to be replaced, but discussions Wednesday afternoon focused on staffing levels and mutual aid.
The fire department typically has five firefighters staffed every shift.
Since Birch started working in Liberty in 1994, however, he said the volume of calls has nearly tripled, while the staffing level has stayed the same.
Once Shepherd of the Valley, an assisted-living facility, starts operating on Tibbetts-Wick Road next year, the number of calls is expected to further increase.
“It’s time Liberty Township steps up and addresses the issues, and take care of residents the way they need to be taken care of,” Birch said.
The department receives several back-to-back or overlapping calls per day, Birch said, so to provide emergency medical or fire services to residents, firefighters use mutual aid.
A few of the surrounding communities don’t have ambulances to help with emergency medical calls, however, and those that do, have staffing issues of their own and can’t always be available, Birch said.
The chief proposed adding two part-time firefighters per shift so the township can operate its third ambulance, which would reduce their reliance on mutual aid and increase their response time. Two firefighters are needed to operate an ambulance.
“In our business, time is of the essence,” he said.
Birch estimated the cost at $245,000 for adding two part-time firefighters per shift.
Trustee Arnie Clebone said alternatives to adding staff should be considered because of the cost.
He said the trustees will review the budget and analyze data before making a decision.
Birch proposed some ideas to cut fire budget costs or create revenue to help alleviate some of the fire department’s problems.
One idea was building a central fire station to replace the two on Logan Way and Belmont Avenue.
He said it’s expensive to operate two stations, and the facilities are outdated.
The township owns property that was intended to be used for a central station.
Another solution was a capital-improvements levy, which could potentially be used to cover costs such as maintenance and free up some funds for staffing.
Clebone said he worries another tax levy wouldn’t appeal to residents.
Trustee Jodi Stoyak suggested creating a citizen’s committee to get public input.
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