Flagstaff fire officials warn staffing shortfalls, rising calls and vertical growth strain response capacity

City fire officials told a Flagstaff City committee that rising visitor counts, university enrollment and vertical development have outpaced the department’s staffing and equipment, leaving response capacity stretched for both medical and high‑risk fire incidents.

"Most of us make assumptions that if we dial 911, we're going to get help quickly," Fire Chief Mark Gaylord said, emphasizing the department’s reliance on the "5 E's" of community risk reduction — education, enforcement, engineering, economic incentives and emergency response.

The department outlined several measures of strain: six staffed stations covering Flagstaff and the surrounding regional footprint; roughly 18,000 calls and about 19,730 'runs' in recent reporting; and an operational mix that sends multiple units to single incidents. "By national standards... we should have 33 more full‑time employees," Mark Wilson (presenting departmental staffing charts) said, citing a benchmark range used in the slides.

Staff described co‑staffing (multiple apparatus per station but fewer crews), automatic aid with neighboring districts and a "3‑in‑1" dispatch model (three units, plus a battalion chief) as efficiency strategies that nonetheless carry tradeoffs: a crew working a medical call removes that engine from immediate availability for structural or wildland response. The department also said 15 percent of personnel are eligible to retire within five years and that 47 percent have 10 years or less of service, a demographic mix they called a succession and readiness concern.

Chief Gaylord and operations staff highlighted specific operational limits as Flagstaff’s built environment changes: the number of aerial apparatus needed for taller buildings and the manpower required for larger commercial or high‑rise incidents. "Flagstaff is currently a 2," Gaylord said, referring to the Insurance Services Office classification; he and others warned that wildfire and building growth complicate underwriting and community risk.

EMS leaders said paramedic supply is a nationwide issue with local consequences: "Paramedics are required to memorize over 86 protocols," EMS Battalion Chief Seth Greger said, adding that many time‑sensitive calls (cardiac arrests, strokes, overdoses) require multiple advanced clinicians on scene to meet standards of care. Staff described a growing reliance on alternative responses: the CARES program has handled about 1,700 calls to date, removing some lower‑acuity demand but leaving many high‑acuity calls for fire and ambulance resources.

Dispatch staff outlined capacity constraints at the regional 9‑1‑1 center, which handles roughly 22,000 calls across six departments, and said the city will implement a modern computer‑aided dispatch (CAD) system within 12–18 months to improve triage, partner coordination and potential AI call‑taking. Officials cautioned that technology and regionalization require funding and operational support to be effective.

City staff framed the presentation as data to inform budget and policy deliberations. They said the City Council and city management ultimately decide funding priorities, and staff asked the committee to pass questions and requests for comparative trend data (for example, multi‑year changes in population served) through an agreed forum. The department will return next week to continue the fire presentation and follow with additional sessions on police, airport and emergency management.

The committee also took a procedural vote at the session start to accept Mike Levin as committee chair and Michelle James as vice chair; the motion carried.