FACT SHEET

Denton Fire Chief Ross Chadwick has proposed to save $119,000 in the 2010-2011 fire department budget by cutting firefighters on Engine 7, Engine 6 and Quint 5. The goal is to reduce overtime expenses by 30%.  The potential result is 3 fewer firefighters on duty any given day. Fewer firefighters on duty will assure a lower level of emergency service and thereby increase the risk to the public and to your local firefighters.

The current minimum staffing level in Denton is 37 firefighters on duty 24 hours a day. This provides around the clock coverage for 7 fire stations, using 6 Engine companies, 1 Truck Company, 1 Quint Company (a type of ladder company), 4 Ambulance Crews, and a Battalion Chief (shift supervisor). 

The Truck Company, Quint Company and 2 Engine Companies are currently staffed with 4 firefighters each. Four Engine Companies are staffed with 3 firefighters each. NFPA 1710, the nationally recognized standard for minimum firefighter crew size, requires a minimum of 4 firefighters per Engine Company.

To comply with NFPA 1710, local minimum staffing would be 41 firefighters on duty each day, using the same number of stations, companies and crews we now have in service. To comply would require at least 22 additional firefighters. 

To maintain our (currently sub-standard) minimum staffing level of 37 firefighters requires at least 6 more firefighters. The Department is understaffed by either measure. Therefore, overtime must be used to maintain the minimum staffing level 7 days a week, primarily due to unscheduled absences for sick leave, workers comp, funeral leave, jury duty, training leave, military leave, etc.  

Because the department is short at least 6 full time firefighter positions, overtime is increased. Cutting overtime simply by reducing the number of firefighters on duty effectively reduces our emergency service capabilities. 

This proposal reduces the number of firefighters on the initial fire engine on a working house fire. It means a greater risk of substantial property damage. It means a decrease in our ability to perform search and rescue in a burning house. This cut in staffing also impacts heart attack calls and major motor vehicle accidents. That missing firefighter/paramedic is needed to quickly and efficiently perform emergency medical service protocols and emergency extrication from vehicles.

There is no question that reducing the number of firefighters on the initial arriving engine company reduces the level of protection. At the very least, it significantly increases the time it takes to assemble enough firefighters to properly do the job.  In some cases, it will actually mean fewer total firefighters will respond to an emergency. 

In addition, this proposed cut in staffing increases the risk to firefighters, who must now handle emergency incidents with smaller crews. Because of documented safety concerns, OSHA requires 4 firefighters on scene before commencing an interior attack on a working house fire (29 CFR 1910.134(g)). An initial arriving crew of three firefighters must either wait for other units to arrive, or disregard generally accepted safety standards.

Three views of Denton Fire Department Staffing:

Note: The current minim staffing level is 37 firefighters. The stated new minimum staffing level, effective October 2010 is 35 firefighters. The actual minimum staffing level, effective October 2010 will be 34 firefighters, including the proposed cut to Quint 5’s crew.

The average number of firefighters in Denton per shift (3 shifts) = 47.33. The average number of firefighters per shift required to maintain a minimum staffing level of 37 (with minimal overtime) = 49.33. This represents a shortage of 6 firefighters (2 per shift, 3 shifts).

If an average firefighter works about 2,912 hours a year (56 hrs/wk X 52 weeks), a shortage of 6 firefighters could be expected to produce up to 17,472 overtime hours a year. With the current 142 firefighters on shift work, an average firefighter would work slightly more than 123 hours of overtime a year due to understaffing. There are many variables that can move that number up or down.

In reality, overtime is not evenly generated over all three shifts. And other measures are in place that have helped reduce overtime in certain situations, such as restricting training, and reducing the number of firefighters on scheduled leave (vacation, holiday, comp time).  These types of measures help keep down costs but create a variety of organizational problems. 

Minimum staffing levels in Denton are already sub-standard, according to NFPA 1710. Reducing staffing levels further is gambling with the lives and property of the citizens and with the health and safety of local firefighters.

The Denton City Council is aware that cutting FD overtime in this manner will cut firefighters from fire engines. We ask for your help in preventing this cut. The Denton Fire Department must be allowed to maintain its current level of service.

The center column of the table shows firefighter deployment in the Denton Fire Department Current Minimum Staffing plan. 

The far left column shows the NFPA 1710 Minimum Staffing level needed to meet the national standard. 

The column on the right shows the cuts to minimum staffing at Stations 5, 6 and 7 in the Proposed 2010-2011 budget.

The Denton Fire Fighters Committee for a Responsible Government has voted uninanimously to endorse Neil Durrance for the 26th Congressional District of Texas.  He is running in the upcoming election against incumbent Michael Burgess.  Join us in helping fight to protect our unions, get the National Collective Bargaining Bill passed, fight against big business and special interests by voting to elect Neil Durrance.

www.durranceforcongress.com