Fire company warns of rising calls, daytime staffing gaps and equipment strain

Presenter (fire company representative) told the board the department’s call volume has climbed and recruitment remains the central challenge. "We're at 233 calls this year. We're at 34% ahead of last year already," the Presenter said, and later added, "90% of our calls dispatch with mutual aid. 90%." The presentation outlined five response zones, identified the 512 Corridor as a hotspot tied to new development and warned that daytime staffing shortages make timely responses difficult.

The Presenter described the township population as about 5,300 and said the new school opening and the Sunny Slope Farms development (about 76 homes) are likely to raise call volumes and change peak demand patterns. He said mutual aid currently supplements most responses and urged sustained funding for a staffing incentive program that places crews at the station on targeted nights. The Presenter also summarized the department’s balance sheet and grant receipts and said savings have been drawn down: "We have $118,000 in our savings account," he said while outlining recent capital bills and grant items.

The board questioned staffing trade-offs and capital needs. Supervisors asked for cost estimates and preventive-maintenance quotes for an aerial apparatus that the Presenter said is 14 years old and would require major work; he noted replacement cost estimates implied by the apparatus market have risen substantially since the truck was purchased. The Presenter asked the board to clarify which operational costs the township will cover going forward and invited supervisors to attend fire-company meetings for oversight and information-sharing.