Firefighters face obstacles every day fighting fires, dealing with unwarranted medical aid calls and many other unmentioned reasons.  However, the most obvious is politics within a department or outside that can be tricky.

The City of Everett is approximately 25 miles North of Seattle with a population of 103,000 was once a mill town but has become a booming City.  With a labor force with over 80,000 with large major employers such as Boeing, Naval Station Everett, Verizon, Kimberly Clark and the list goes on.

Everett Firefighters have been providing adequate and resources to Citizens and Visitors since their creation in 1892.  The Citizens of Everett pay an EMS Levy that helps pay for services. 

Firefighters report staffing reductions as one of the big key issues that is plagueing their City.  What does this mean for the public?  Fire Department aid cars may or may not be available for aid calls that support their 911 system, Safety and slower response times.  We have heard it all over the country with Departments facing budget cuts and crisis.  What to do they say?  Cut your most needed services, such as a police and fire.  Why?  This has been a sore subject for me, not only as a citizen paying for these vital services but to see our PD and Fire populations dropping.  Why can’t they cut in other areas?  As far as I can see, there is more waste in some of the other programs that are being offered to the public that could be cut.  As a person in the financial field, I would love to help them make recommendations – just like my counterparts, but as you can see we are not involved in politics.

Here are some of the obstacles that one of our local Fire Departments in Everett, Washington are facing today.  1) Brownouts – if there are not enough firefighters at a station, the station is temporarily closed and the existing crew gets sent somewhere else to make up a full crew. 2) Layoffs – service levels could go down.  3) Firefighter safety – fewer firefighters, mean more heavy work on existing crews which could lead to injury or death. 4) Fire Department Aid units may or may not be available for BLS calls to be transported.

Did you know that a fire can double in size in less than (2) minutes or that a small flame can turn into a full engulfed house fire within 30 seconds?  These are things that the Council and the City of Everett need to review if they are willing to risk their Citizens’s lives and property for. It is clearly stated that the City must provide an infrastructure AND Public Safety. We all know that is made up of Police and Fire. 

Firefighters quoted on their FaceBook page, “32 Everett Fire Captains agree that decreased staffing levels through brownouts will have a negative effect on fire department service levels.  There will be a decrease in ability to accomplish their mission statement, ‘To Serve and Protect the Lives of Our Citizens , Their Property and The Environment.'”

 What can you do to help?  Contact the Everett City Mayor directly and give them your opinion on what the Everett Fire Department means to the Citizens and how this will gravely put them in danger.  Contact: Mayor Ray Stephanson at 425-257-7112 or by email: rstephanson@ci.everett.wa.us.

Staff reductions are a safety and service concern.  Please voice your opinion to the Mayor or to another Council member.  Visit the meetings and voice your concerns.  Tell them this is unacceptable.

Want to be kept apprised of this story or the Everett Firefighters’ plight, you can check them out on FaceBook – Everett Firefighters.

** Disclaimer:  Some opinions in this post are not from the originator, Everett firefighters and are based upon the opinions of the poster.***

Source:  City of Everett statistics, Everett Firefighters and FaceBook

(c) 2012 The NW Fire Blog