Fire department proposes updated standards of cover, adds 'peak activity' EMS unit concept

Richland Fire Department leaders presented a proposed update to the department’s Standards of Cover, recommending revised, data-driven response-time standards, a dedicated basic-life-support (BLS) “peak activity” unit and continued reliance on mutual and automatic aid for high‑demand incidents.

Deputy Chief Ost and the fire chief said the last Standards of Cover was adopted in 2009 and does not reflect current call patterns, transportation infrastructure or the city’s staffing; they said NFPA 1710 (a national reference standard) will be used for context but is not a practical target for the city. "Turnout time is the time of dispatch to going en route to an incident," Deputy Chief Ost said while defining terms staff used in the study. Chief staff characterized the update as an effort to set aggressive yet achievable standards so the department can allocate resources efficiently rather than adopt unachievable national targets.

Staff presented call-type breakouts showing roughly 70% of calls are EMS related and that EMS calls were grouped into four acuity levels (med 1 through med 4). They proposed separating BLS and ALS turnout and travel times — allowing longer travel times for lower-acuity BLS calls — so that lower-acuity calls can be covered by a single dedicated BLS unit over a larger geographic area. The proposed "peak activity unit" concept would station a BLS-dedicated ambulance during peak periods to cover much of the city’s BLS demand without adding multiple full ALS units.

The Standards of Cover update also recommends reframing special-operations expectations from a technician-level first-arriving timeframe to an operations-level first-arriving timeframe because the city’s technical teams (hazmat, technical rescue) are near-zero-volume call types and full technician responses are infrequent; the change is intended to reflect current operational realities while ensuring technicians can be requested and arrive if needed.

Maps in the presentation compared current station coverage, a nine‑station buildout and an adjusted coverage scenario with an 8‑minute travel-time goal; staff said the adjusted travel-time approach can increase coverage efficiency and enable station 5 to provide more assistance into the core of the city. Staff said the approach will be paired with trigger points in the comprehensive plan to indicate when to add staffing or stations.

Council discussion focused on realism of standards, regional coordination with neighboring jurisdictions and the need for data-driven triggers for future staffing or station additions. Staff said they will return with a resolution for council adoption and additional materials tying standards to staffing recommendations and comprehensive-plan triggers. No policy change was adopted during the workshop.

The department emphasized that the update is intended to set realistic, measurable service-level standards and to provide transparency to the public about response expectations and the resource tradeoffs involved in faster response standards.