Chief: Staffing issues among challenges facing fire dept.
Editor’s note: This is part of a series of stories covering the Yuma City Council retreat held Feb. 1112.
Due to current staffing, the Yuma Fire Department is unable to provide fire and life safety inspections to more than 50 percent of the businesses recommended by its risk schedule each year.
Fire Chief Steve Irr shared staffing needs and recruitment challenges as well as budget highlights and future needs during a City Council retreat held Tuesday.
Irr and other officials are hopeful that the newly adopted pay plan will help in recruiting efforts. He thanked the council for approving the plan, which had been at the top of the needs list for several years. “We see ourselves as a partner in making it happen,” Irr said.
Irr noted that the department still faces other challenges, such as the inability to conduct all fire inspections, which some businesses require to remain open.
Yuma has 4,000 businesses and 2,223 commercial properties. Each commercial building is assigned a risk level of high, medium or low.
Assigned a risk level of high are 575 buildings, which require annual inspections; 532 are medium and require inspections ev-
ery two years; 1,116 are considered low risk and need inspections every three years.
To conduct all inspections in a timely manner, the department needs additional fire inspectors, Irr noted. However, it’s not the only staffing need. The department also needs more funding for a parttime management analyst and fire and emergency medical service training staff. Irr pointed out that staff needs monthly EMS training to maintain certification.
In addition, the Insurance Services Office requires 20 hours of fire training per month for all personnel to maintain the city’s rating. ISO rates fire departments and their communities based on its equipment and capability to put out fires. Yuma currently has a rating of 2, with 1 being the top.
The department also needs training for new employees and succession training for when turnover happens. All this required training can be “overwhelming,” Irr said.
This past year the department had a 4 percent increase in calls for service, with 89 percent requiring a medical response. Transports to the hospital remained flat.
Yuma’s east side is an area of concern. Station No. 7 is scheduled for future construction on land owned by the city near the Foothills Walmart at Avenue 8E and 32nd Street.
In the meantime, the nearest station is No. 5, located at 6490 E. 26th St., off Araby Road. In 2018, the fire department had 461 calls for service, 14 percent increase from 2017. The response time from the moment someone calls dispatch to the time firefighters arrive is 12:31 minutes. The target response time is 7 minutes. Travel time, which is the time the fire crew is actually in the truck and driving to the site, is 10:33 minutes. The target travel time is 5 minutes.
Irr shared some budget highlights, including an $820 increase in the general fund and a $94,859 boost in the public safety tax fund. But fuel costs went up by 40 percent, costing the department $40,000. Irr said it had a “significant impact on our budget.”
The department also experienced general fund increases for repair parts, maintenance for vehicles and equipment, maintenance for burn props at the training facility, and education for paramedics.
Increases to the public safety tax fund included the annual radio fees, personal protective equipment and safety gear, station alerting equipment, rehabilitation of fire stations and cardiac monitors.
The department saw general fund reductions in travel, medical supplies and information technology equipment. In particular, the department switched from Toughbooks, which cost $4,500 each, to iPads, which cost $500. The iPads are on every ambulance and firetruck. Irr noted that the department hasn’t lost or broken one yet but if it does, they’re not expensive to replace.
In addition, some items were moved to the public safety tax fund, which saw reductions in the cost of portable radio replacements, ballistic vests and the annual radio payment.
Irr also listed equipment needs, with cardiac monitors at the top. The department has applied for a $637,000 grant, which requires a 10 percent match, to buy new monitors, which need to be replaced in 2021. If the department doesn’t get the grant, it will have to figure out how to pay for them in 2021.
Eleven vehicles with an average age of 11 years and used by inspectors, trainers, commanders and other staff also need replacement; these vehicles are not in the equipment replacement plan.
“I don’t want to wait until they all break down,” Irr said, noting that he was open to a lease program.
Whenever possible, the department applies for funds. Irr gave kudos to his staff for researching and applying for them. The department received several grants from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, including a $1.5 million grant paying 75 percent of the salary for nine firefighters; $10,000 for smoke detectors; and $20,000 for turnout washers and lockers. These highend washer machines remove soot, which is important for cancer prevention. Firefighters get cancer at a much higher rate than the public does due to their exposure to harmful substances, Irr noted.
The department also received $10,000 in emergency response funds for gas meters and spill kits.
Other grant submissions that are pending include $10,000 for Knox Boxes, which hold keys for fire departments, emergency medical services and police to retrieve in case of emergencies; $10,000 for hazardous materials response equipment; and another $10,000 for technical rescue response equipment.
Irr also pointed out accomplishments for 2018. The dorm rooms in Fire Station No. 1, located at 353 S 3rd Ave., were renovated. The department ordered a fire pumper to replace a 25-year-old one. It’s is considered a “clean cab” and dirty gear isn’t allowed inside it as a cancer prevention measure.
The department also completed the second of two ambulance rebuilds, which provided “huge savings” but took a toll on maintenance staff. Irr explained that doing them back-toback was “tough” and caused staff to lag behind in other projects. But he gave credit to the maintenance manager and fleet staff for a “fantastic job.”
A remodel of Fire Station No. 4, 2850 W. 16th St., is in the early stages. The building was constructed in the 1970s. Irr said he started in that station 33 years ago and he could count on one hand the calls they had in one day. It’s now the third busiest station.
The department also graduated two fire academy classes and has nine new firefighters. It trained three technical rescue technicians and participated in an interdepartmental training for an active-shooter situation.