Lynnfield Fire Chief Glenn Davis presented his department’s budget request for fiscal year 2025 at the Select Board meeting late last month, and the increase in requests shows a desperate need for new firefighters to help with higher call volumes.
Despite hiring eight new call firefighters in the past 18 months, Davis said the department has lost 14 members.
“Our goals for the upcoming year are recruitment and retention of firefighters,” Davis said. “Continued attrition and turnover in the Fire Department is making it challenging to maintain the call division.”
Davis also explained that the department requires call firefighters to respond to at least 10% of calls for their services, which amounts to around 24 calls, as their call volume is somewhere between 2,300 and 2,400 per month.
“A majority number of calls are being handled by a diminishing number of firefighters, causing burnout.” Davis said.
In the question-and-answer portion of the meeting, Select Board member Dick Dalton acknowledged that most of the public might not have known that the Fire Department handles medical calls requiring ambulance services far more than calls regarding structure fires. Davis said that fire calls make up around 30% of the department’s volume, and emergency medical services take up 70%.
With this information, Davis’ plan for the four new firefighters involves assigning them to overnight rotating shifts. This would allow for two people to handle the first emergency call, with two people left in the firehouse to be prepared for a potential next call. Davis said it would be especially important when turn-around times are higher than usual because nearby hospitals are also understaffed. Instead of meeting the goal of a 30-minute turnaround time for each call, Davis said it often ends up being an hour.
“Our next closest hospitals are either MelroseWakefield or Lahey Hospital and Medical Center in Burlington, which is a little farther away, but they are all short staffed,” Davis said. “So when we enter an emergency room, we’re not always being greeted and handled right away, and a lot of times we’re standing in a hallway waiting for a bed assignment.”
Davis also spoke about how the department raises revenue by utilizing mutual aid to handle the high volume of calls that can’t be done in house due to understaffing. The department sometimes helps other nearby communities and sometimes receives help from them, which helps offset overhead costs such as salaries.
Davis also announced that the department has asked for a grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to help staff the four firefighters for three years.
Other than the request to get salaries for four new firefighters, the department’s budget request also includes contractual increases and costs related to non-union staff.
