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Fire chief reports Q4 performance, flags aging ladder truck
Summary
The fire chief reported 326 calls for the year, noted response‑time metrics are limited by dispatch logging, flagged difficulty meeting responder benchmarks, and said a 2000 ladder truck approaching 26 years will be discussed at a future work session.
The fire chief presented the department’s Q4 2025 performance measures and recommended clarifying calculation methods for future year‑to‑year comparisons. City staff said dispatch logs currently record the first arriving vehicle (often a command vehicle) rather than the first arriving engine, which limits the usefulness of some response‑time metrics.
The chief reported a total call volume of 326 for the year. He said responder‑goal benchmarks — for example, a benchmark of 10 responders for structure fires — remain difficult to meet and that the department’s adherence to that benchmark was around 25% for the year. By contrast, medical incidents nearly always have multiple responders: the chief reported two or more responders 99% of the time for medical calls.
Motor‑vehicle‑crash response rates were reported near 41% compared with a benchmark of 8% (the chief said the 8% figure relates to a staffing configuration that is unlikely under current staffing levels). He also said the department gave mutual aid on 12 structure fires and received mutual aid on six incidents during the year.
The chief flagged aging equipment and said the department will discuss the future of a ladder truck (model year 2000) at an upcoming work session; the vehicle will approach 26 years in service. Staff said inspections, which were zero for this past year, will begin again as part‑time posting and rotation allow.
Councilors asked whether there can be too many responders on medical calls; the chief said dispatch and the paid‑on‑call system produce variable turnout and that the preference is to have resources en route and cancel when not needed to avoid understaffing.
