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Brentwood Fire Department reports busiest year in data-driven presentation, highlights training and special assets
Summary
Assistant Chief Berney told the Board that 2024 was the busiest year on record for the department’s tracked calls, cited increases in EMS transports and training hours, and described use of a drone, inflatable boat and Polaris UTV for operations and community support.
Assistant Chief Berney presented the Brentwood Fire Department’s 2024 performance review to the Board, saying 2024 was “our busiest year, since we started collecting this type of data,” and outlining increases in fire and ambulance calls, EMS transports, training hours and use of specialty equipment.
Berney said the department recorded “2,300 plus fire calls and just a little shy of 1,500 ambulance calls.” He told the Board that, when counted together, the combined responses would be higher and that EMS transports have increased by about 200 — “literally 33% increase over these 4 years” since February 2021. Berney attributed higher transports both to revenue capture through third‑party billing and to growing community comfort with calling the department for service.
The department reported substantially more training hours in 2023 after securing grant funding. “In 2023, we were over 8,000 hours,” Berney said, calling training the foundation of the department’s work and noting most extra hours in 2023 were for technical rescue skills relevant to local risks such as ice rescue, vehicles and confined‑space operations.
Berney also described special assets the department uses. Since January 2023 the department’s drone has completed 507 flights (about 80 operational hours) for a mix of construction documentation (the “Brentwood bound” park project), maintenance flights and a small number of emergency public‑safety missions. The department’s inflatable Zodiac boat has supported 32 emergency responses over a four‑year span, and a Polaris UTV has responded 19 times (15 of those near Brentwood Park), including towing the boat for the recent ice rescue exercise.
Berney credited Fire Marshal Hammer with increasing annual commercial inspections and plan‑review support to the planning department. He said the department reached full compliance on annual commercial inspections (the number stated in the presentation was “4,502”) and that the fire marshal performed liaison and plan‑review work that grew from about 22 instances to roughly 75 in the most recent year. Berney said those inspections and plan reviews help with sprinkler and standpipe reviews for new projects and remodels.
Berney closed by noting public visibility of the department and a plaque acknowledging training partnerships: “we have a plaque inside the fire station from the Saint Louis County Fire Academy congratulating the Brentwood Fire Department for 97 hours of advanced firefighter training. . . . Very proud of our personnel.”
The presentation concluded with an offer to answer questions and an indication that the department’s 2024 performance spreadsheet was provided to the Board as a supporting document.
Assistant Chief Berney and staff did not present new policy proposals or request Board action during the presentation; the session was informational.
