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At 6:57am this morning (12/01/20) a fire was reported in the first-up territory of Engine 27.
Engine 27 is consistently among the busiest engine companies in the city in responding to fires and life threatening medical emergencies.

This morning, as on most others recently, Engine 27 was out of service due to staffing shortages following public safety furloughs.

Other companies instead responded from farther away. The fastest arriving engine was there in 6 minutes, 21 seconds (a total response time of 7 minutes, 54 seconds from the call to 911). This is within expected bounds for a second or third arriving company. But not for the first. It is incompatible with efficiently saving life and property.

Engine 27 would normally arrive in about 4 minutes.

On arrival, the first company found heavy fire conditions and the need for an immediate search inside of the home as there was evidence that one or more people could be inside.

Only by sheer luck was no one in this home this morning; otherwise we might have seen our third fire death in as many weeks. It bad enough that another home has been destroyed.

Fire stations aren’t placed at random, and that approximately 2 minute difference between potential arrival times is so often the factor between life or death or the saving of a family home, the saving of the neighbor’s home, or a local business.

This is happening repeatedly. This is happening often. There have been several examples in just the last few weeks.

Mayor Cantrell says the data doesn’t support what we keep seeing and reporting to you. What we’re saying can’t possibly be true, she would have us and you, believe.
Her spokesman, Beau Tidwell, refers to the closing of multiple engine companies per day as designed for “minimal impact”.

Maybe he chose the right words, after all. Because what we’re realizing is that, cut to the bone and beyond, we’re starting to have minimal impact on stopping the progress of a house fire and the loss of life. ... See MoreSee Less

2 days ago

Early this morning yet another dangerous fire in the immediate first up territory of a closed down engine company - Engine 27 this time.
More details to follow. ... See MoreSee Less

3 days ago