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Wadsworth Fire Chief: January calls up 53% year‑over‑year; EMS still majority of runs
Summary
Fire Chief Bob Lindner told the Public Safety Committee that January saw 40 runs (30 in city, 8 in township), a 53% increase from last year for the month, with EMS/rescue calls dominating; average response time was reported at 6:05.
Fire Chief Bob Lindner told the committee on Feb. 12 that January was busier than a typical winter month, driven by weather and medical calls.
“January was a very busy month for the Fire Department,” Lindner said, and reported 40 overall runs (30 in the city, 8 in the township), a 53% increase from the same month the prior year. He said EMS/rescue categories comprised the majority of calls and that the department’s yearly EMS totals were about 7% above 2025 levels.
Lindner addressed operational impacts including average response time (6:05) and staffing metrics (average on‑duty firefighters 5.9, average recall 1.9). He also described how regional hospital diversions after a nearby water main break led to some transports being routed to SUMMA/Akron City Hospital rather than Cleveland Clinic Akron General for certain cardiac and stroke cases.
Chief Lindner said the upward trend in call volume from 2025 into 2026 would be monitored and that the department is tracking mutual aid given/received and training needs as part of budget and staffing discussions.
