At first glance, the City of
A temporary tax levy has allowed us to staff our
station with at least one paid Firefighter/EMT twenty-four hours a day. However, fifteen active volunteer
firefighters provide the backbone of the Phoenix Fire Department. Exceptional volunteer recruitment, along with
strong partnerships with the community and neighboring fire districts, allow
the Phoenix Fire Department to provide exemplary emergency services.
The
Phoenix Fire Department is in desperate need of purchasing a pumper to replace
a 1974 unit, which the department purchased as a “demo” unit 31 years ago, from
a manufacturer who has since gone out of business. The average age of all our vehicles is 20
years. With the increasing age of our
fleet, it is anticipated that costly breakdowns will occur even more
frequently. There is a continuing risk
of apparatus failure when responding to alarms and during emergency operations. Also, a new pumper would eliminate the
problem of much older parts wearing out and needing replacement, replacement
parts that may no longer be available as our pumper becomes obsolete.
To
help keep the price of a new pumper lower, our department would like to
purchase a “program” vehicle rather than a custom vehicle with all the bells
and whistles. Price quotes for an
equivalent new pumper that meets current NFPA 1901 standards is $265,000. There are two fire apparatus dealers in
A budget summary
follows:
New Pumper Price:
$265,000
Federal Fire Grant
Portion (95%): $251,750
After a quick peek at our Fire Department’s budget,
it is easy to see how we have come to this grant request. For many years, the citizens of
Two state tax limitation measures (
The economy is another factor that affects our
ability to fund this project locally. The economy in
Many of
We have pursued other grant opportunities for this
unit with no success. Other means of financing have also been explored, such as
long-term loans paid in installments and leasing. The result is the same every
time; there just isn’t enough money in our budget to take on this project by
ourselves.
Following is a summary of our Average Annual Department Operating Budget
of $415,000
·76% - $315,000 Personal Services (Wages, Taxes,
Insurance, etc.)
·22% - $90,000 Materials & Services
(Maintenance, Supplies, Training, PPE, etc.)
·2% - $10,000 Capital Outlay
Currently, the Phoenix Fire Department does not have the operating
budget or capital reserve to support purchasing a new (or refurbished) pumper.
We simply live levy to levy with no ability to take on this project ourselves.
The main and direct
benefit from the cost of this purchase will be increased safety and reliability
for our firefighter/EMTs to effectively respond to
our emergency calls for service. With
the help of grant funds to purchase this pumper, we will also be able to keep
our budget focused on maintaining our staffing levels. Additionally, the warranty offered on a new
pumper will be a direct cost benefit to our fire department. Having a warranty to cover potential problems
with the apparatus in the first several years of ownership could be worth
thousands of dollars to our fire department.
The two fire districts
(Medford Fire Department and Jackson County Fire District #5) surrounding the
City of Phoenix, as well as the Oregon Department of Forestry, will also
directly benefit from this purchase.
With an on-board foam proportioner system and
“pump-and-roll” capability, interoperability will be greatly enhanced, as the
new pumper responds to all mutual aid alarms (last year, we responded to 155
alarms as mutual aid outside our district, and received mutual aid to 35 of our
calls). The areas that we respond mutual
aid to vary widely from rural with hilly terrain, to the high-speed lanes of
Interstate-5, requiring a safe, reliable, and good quality pumper.
Indirectly, the impact of
a new pumper with our fifteen active volunteers will be immeasurable. It would be a tremendous boost in pride and
morale for the fire department to obtain a new pumper. This may also indirectly help recruit
additional volunteers. Although this may
not seem important on the surface, the Phoenix Fire Department would not be
able to operate without volunteers.
The
31-year-old pumper that we will be replacing has a single bench seat for
personnel to ride on, with the intent of additional firefighters riding on the
tailboard. With current NFPA safety
standards, we no longer ride tailboard and are now only able to staff with
engine with a maximum of three firefighters cramped in the cab. Not only are these firefighters unable to don
all of their PPE prior to arriving on-scene, the overcrowded cab makes the
engine difficult to drive safely.
A
new pumper will safely and reliably carry four firefighters in full PPE to our
calls, as well as the 155 mutual aid calls we respond to annually. The new pumper will be plumbed with fittings
to adapt to neighboring district apparatus, including large diameter hose,
which we are currently unable to do.
Rapid Intervention Team (RIT) equipment will be carried on the new pumpers,
which have standardized connections for emergency air supply.
In
2002, we were fortunate enough to receive an AFG to purchase SCBA’s and in
2004, we received an AFG for a cascade system and portable radios.
The
fire districts of Jackson and Josephine counties have a VERY active mutual aid
program. On average, we provide mutual
aid 155 times and receive mutual aid 35 times a year. We have contacted Deputy Chief Mark Burns of
Medford Fire Department and Division Chief Darin Welburn of Jackson County Fire
District #5 and both agree that a new pumper at
Our
2004 Assistance to Firefighters Grant project is a great example of our working
relationships with our neighboring agencies.
Through the assistance of this grant, we have been able to purchase a
mobile cascade system to be shared with our neighboring districts.
8414 is a 31 year
old Pumper with a 1250gpm pump and a 1000 gallon tank. (This is the unit we
need to replace.)
8404 is a 13 year
old Pumper with a 1250gpm pump and a 1000 gallon tank.
8464 is a 15 Type
6 Wildland Unit with a 110gpm pump and a 250 gallon
tank.
8434 is a 17 year
old Rescue unit.
8424 is a 32 year
old Support unit.
8450 is a 9 year
old Staff car.
Written by: Chris Wolfard
Operations Chief
Applegate Valley Fire District
#9