North College Hill public-safety panel hears fire department update; ambulance loans and station maintenance noted

Chief Placke provided the public-safety committee with an operational update on Aug. 11, reporting that the city is meeting current ambulance needs through borrowed vehicles and a loaner provided by insurance after a crash, and that the department is preparing for upcoming labor negotiations and a levy renewal.

"We're we're running about, on average, 222 incidents per month," Chief Placke told the committee, and added the department was "operating at full strength" after receiving two loaner ambulances. He said the department had battled ambulance availability issues for roughly six months and that the replacements allowed normal service to resume.

Placke outlined several maintenance and community-safety items: plans to sandblast and repaint fire hydrants (the department plans to recoat them red), a subject-matter expert review of reported mold in the fitness area below the police department with a mitigation report pending, and a public-education push about CPR training, fire-inspection scheduling and smoke-detector installations (the department reported about 60 smoke detectors installed year-to-date and 12 installed in July).

Placke also told the committee that contract negotiations with full-time and part-time firefighters will begin soon; the union contracts expire at the end of the year. Committee members acknowledged the department is also preparing for a levy renewal and asked how the public could assist with outreach; Placke said no immediate volunteer needs were required at that time.

No formal committee action or vote on fire staffing, station repairs or the levy was taken at the meeting; members instead heard the update and suggested continued coordination between council and the department.