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Fire chief reports steady response performance, raises turnout‑gear PFAS concerns and overtime pressures
Summary
Chief O'Connor of the Beverly Fire Department told the finance and property committee that department incident volumes and response performance remain a focus as the department moves through the FY26 budget process.
Chief O'Connor of the Beverly Fire Department told the finance and property committee that department incident volumes and response performance remain a focus as the department moves through the FY26 budget process. “We’re up to about 6,400 incidents last year when I started. We’re doing about 3,900. Excuse me,” Chief O'Connor said while reviewing response maps.
The department’s budget request keeps its current staffing structure for emergency response: 44 firefighters, 12 lieutenants, 4 captains and 4 deputies, with a minimum on duty staffing level of 13 each shift to provide three pumping apparatus, a ladder and an incident officer. Chief O'Connor described three overtime lines in the budget—shift coverage to hold the daily minimum staffing, a general emergency line for callbacks during major events, and an off‑duty training line for required classes that cannot be completed on shift.
On response times, O'Connor said most areas show acceptable performance although some outlying streets can exceed 11 minutes: “If you see red, it's mostly down the end of Hull Street, that end, you can be up over 11 and a half minutes,” he said. He credited combined dispatch with reduced response times.
Budget changes highlighted by the chief include a modest reduction to building maintenance, a reduction in EMS supplies that were elevated during COVID, and a slight decrease in the special supplies line that funds turnout gear replacements. Chief O'Connor noted current turnout gear costs and a replacement policy: “Turnout gear is about $4,000 a set now for just the coat and the pants… Everybody has to have 2 sets of gear, and we always have to have a maintainer,” he said, adding the department attempts to keep gear under a ten‑year service life.
On occupational health, O'Connor discussed PFAS and cancer risk related to protective clothing and combustion byproducts. He said manufacturers are working on PFAS‑free materials but warned of tradeoffs with heat protection and firefighter safety: “As the manufacturers start coming up with better alternatives for PFAS, we will buy turnout gear that is PFAS free. But right now, we just wanna make sure we're getting the right thing,” he said.
Chief O'Connor described the department’s mutual aid role and noted that a statewide brush‑fire mobilization last season required multiple deployments outside Beverly. He also described the new forestry truck and other resources the department has acquired for wildland/brush responses.
Councilors asked about overtime adequacy, mutual aid reliance, and training; O'Connor said overtime levels are adequate if staffing levels remain stable but that extended injuries or retirements can force further budget requests later in the year.
No formal vote on fire department appropriations occurred; the committee referred the full FY26 budget (Order 171) to the full council for a public hearing the following day.
