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New Fire Chief outlines staffing, volunteer standards and South End station timeline
Summary
Fire Chief Drew Savage told the Health and Safety Committee that Winchester Fire Rescue is increasing career staffing, formalizing ranks, working with volunteer companies on standards and safety, and expects the new South End fire station and city engine deliveries in 2026.
Drew Savage, Winchester's newly appointed fire chief, told the Health and Safety Committee that he has spent his first three months reviewing department operations and beginning several initiatives including increases to career staffing, a promotional reclassification to add captains, volunteer-company standards, and long-range apparatus replacement planning.
Savage said the department's daily minimum career staffing is 15 personnel, all cross-trained in fire and EMS, and that an in-house fire academy is due to graduate a class in mid-September; additional hiring funded in last year's budget will support further staffing increases with a target class start in mid-October. "Those members will get introduced operationally and that will…
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