[In response to “Gray’s view on public safety unchanged; Tough budgetary choices ahead”]
What grants have the city administration sought for the Fire Bureau to fund operations? The answer: NONE. It is noteworthy that Harrisburg recently conducted a civil service examination for firefighters in an effort to replace four pending retirees. Harrisburg also sought out and received a grant from the state allowing them to fund four ADDITIONAL firefighter positions at no cost to city taxpayers.
Reading is about to enter act 47 status, however their fire chief had the foresight to seek available federal stimulus funding for his department. The result? Reading is about to receive a $2.5 million dollar grant for their fire department, likely eliminating most if not all personnel cuts there.
Yet Mayor Gray, and his proxy Fire Chief Tim Gregg, have done nothing to provide additional revenue streams for the fire bureau.
The Lancaster city fire bureau has for years been viewed as the expendable resource when financial times get tough. At one time, the fire bureau here had as many as 120 personnel in six active fire stations with two full alarms available for immediate response in the city. Through reductions the bureau reached the size of approximately ninety firefighters under the Stork administration. She laid off seventeen. Smithgall laid off three. Fire station 5 was closed. Today there are eighty-five firefighters in three fire stations. Eighty-nine are authorized by the city, but none have been hired since 2007.
Many here don’t think of the fire bureau on a day to day basis. This is understandable considering the nature of the incidents that draw citizens and taxpayers together. However when one of those emergency incidents occur, taxpayers of Lancaster expect their firefighters to respond quickly, in force, with the resources immediately available to mitigate any emergency situation.
National standards (NFPA 1710) requires four or five firefighters to respond on each apparatus to emergency calls, with a minimum of sixteen at the scene of a fire.
If Mayor Gray and Tim Gregg have their way, the fire bureau will be reduced by 25%, and fire apparatus will respond with two fire personnel on board. That would allow for as few as ten fire fighters to respond to a structure fire. In such a situation, it is impossible for fire fighters, no matter how well trained or highly motivated, to safely conduct operations.
Mayor Gray needs to get his head on straight when it comes to this city’s financial priorities. Emergency services are the single, primary obligation of municipal government. Every dollar used for a pet project (trolley cars, convention center), secondary operation (MOOSE, Lancaster Recreation Center, city arborist, Neighborhood Revitalization Unit) or discretionary expenditure (Lancaster Community Safety Coalition funding, other city grants and loans to organizations) should be immediately redirected to emergency service operations.
The city has to realize that without appropriate emergency services, no reinvestment in this city will occur. The obligation is in the hands of the mayor and council to fully fund police and fire. They owe it to the citizens of Lancaster to do so, and they owe it to the cops and firefighters who keep this city safe to do so.
