Overdose crisis forces changes to fire crews

Dayton fire engine to be out of service at times so medics can respond to health emergencies.

One of the Dayton Fire Department’s engines will be put out of service at times so medics can respond to health emergencies.

After a record-setting 2016, the Dayton Fire Department is on pace to respond to even more emergency calls this year, which is partly a reflection of how the deadly overdose crisis is draining public resources.

As a result, the Dayton Fire Department for the first time in about two decades is making a staffing change that at times will place one of the department’s fire engines out of service so its medics can respond to health emergencies.

The switch seeks to reduce the city’s reliance on mutual aid, which is when emergency responders from other jurisdictions cross into Dayton to provide fire and medical services, officials said.

“It only goes in service, if needed,” said Dayton fire Chief Jeff Payne. “We have to take the engine out of service, because we don’t respond with less than four people.”

The Dayton Fire Department issued a bulletin last week outlining how crews at fire Company 8 on Stanley Avenue will “cross staff ” the fire truck and two medic units.

Dayton’s fire engines respond to scenes with no less than two EMTs and two paramedics. The city operates seven medic units. All firefighters are paramedics or EMTs.

Starting in July, if a medic call comes in and all of the

department’s medic units are already tied up responding to calls, the fire engine at Company 8 will be taken out of service so its staff can break into two-person medic teams.

The “cross-staffed” medic teams will have a paramedic and an EMT.

Stephen Post is sergeantat-arms for the firefighters union. He said the union thinks the department needs to shoot higher.

“What we’d like is to have eight engines in service all the time period,” Post said.

The change comes at a time when the fire department is responding to unprecedented levels of calls.

Last year, the fire department responded to a record-setting 36,264 incidents. Half way through this year, the department has responded to 22,120 calls. Nearly 80 percent of calls are EMS incidents.

Crews are having to grapple with a huge spike in drug overdose deaths, which in Montgomery County have already surpassed 2016’s record high.

The fire department right now is too heavily relying on mutual aid from other jurisdictions, and cross staffing hopefully will reduce the assistance by about 50 percent, Payne said.

Assistant Fire Chief Jeff Lykins said the fire department already cross staffs its rescue units, and the practice allows fire personnel to serve multiple functions to provide important services.