 F-M
seeking more firefighters
By Dave Roepke droepke@forumcomm.com,The Forum
Published July 14, 2005
Nine out of 10 firefighters who die at a fire scene do so in the first 15
minutes, with less than 20 other fire fighters present, according to National
Fire Protection Association.
That’s why fire departments in Fargo and Moorhead are seeking to bolster
their ranks with a federal grant to subsidize nine extra fire fighters between
the two cities.
“We’re looking to put more firefighters on the ground,” said Moorhead
Fire Chief Joel Hewitt.
Fargo has asked for six, while Moorhead requested three. The grants would be
worth a combined $900,000.
The extra positions would help the departments conform to guidelines set by
the protection association that call for increasing the number of firefighters
that respond to blazes, said Steve Balstad, an assistant fire chief in Fargo.
Set in 2001, the guidelines -- which are not mandated -- say departments
should be able to respond to a call with 15 firefighters in 8 minutes 90 percent
of the time.
“The more resources you put at a fire quicker, the better and quicker the
outcome,” Hewitt said.
Set up much like a similar federal program for police, the five-year grants
would pay for the bulk of firefighters’ salaries in the first year.
Subsidies reduce in the subsequent years, dropping to 80 percent, then 50
percent, then 30 percent, Balstad said.
In the final year, the cities would have to pick up the whole tab.
The local match over the five years would be $780,000 in Fargo and $530,000
in Moorhead.
After that, the cities would be on their own if they want to keep the extra
personnel.
Both departments plan to do just that, expecting a growing tax base to pick
up the extra costs.
“That would be our hope to be able to do that,” Balstad said.
The gradually increasing expense would make fitting the extra personnel into
the city’s budget easier, said Fargo City Commissioner Mike Williams.
Though response times for the two departments have been holding steady or
dropping in recent years, growth means more fire calls. “The more people we
put in the city, the busier we’re going to be,” Hewitt said. Compared with a
handful of cities with similar populations, the sizes of the departments do not
lag behind their regional peers. “We have to do our best to keep pace,”
Balstad said. Fire officials are not sure when they will hear about the grants.
This is the first year they have been offered.
“There’s really no history to provide any direction on how it’s going
to go,” Hewitt said.
The West Fargo Fire Department is a volunteer force of 40 fire fighters.
About 3,000 departments applied for the $65 million in money available during
this year’s round of grants, according to Minnesota Fire Service News.
Readers can reach Forum reporter
Dave Roepke at (701) 241-5535
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CORRECTIONS
07/15/2005
Wrong
source An incorrect source was cited in a story in the July 14 Forum story,
“F-M seeking more firefighters.” A statistic concerning the percentage of
felled firefighters who die during a fire’s first 15 minutes should have been
attributed to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.
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