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Fire and EMS report shows improved response times but highlights strain from simultaneous calls
Summary
Local fire and EMS officials reported improved average response times for the six‑month period but said frequent simultaneous calls and long out‑of‑town transports strain volunteer capacity and justify consideration of additional career staffing.
Fire and EMS leaders presented a combined midyear operational report to the council, telling members the town's average fire response time improved to 2 minutes, 59 seconds for Jan. 1–June 30 from 3 minutes, 31 seconds the prior year. Officials attributed some improvement to greater experience among communication staff but warned that simultaneous calls and long transports remain a critical operational pressure.
An agency official explained the simultaneous‑call problem: dispatch commonly assigns a paramedic identifier (for example, “paramedic 61”) while crews rotate among ambulances, which complicates automated reporting and can make calls appear concurrent in the data. Presenters said volunteers typically cover an initial response but the town relies on mutual aid when multiple labor‑intensive incidents occur at once. "As they get better and more tenured, I think you'll see countywide ... response time come down," an agency official said.
