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Recognition
Thank you, the citizens of Plaistow, for your continued support of your fire department. Without this support, we cannot do the job you expect of us. From the financial needs of operating the department to the compassion and respect you demonstrate to us when we are responding to calls, your interaction helps us to keep in focus as to why we exist as a vital part of our community.
The fire department is unique from the other departments in the town that provide vital services to the community. Our group relies heavily upon the citizens to make up our ranks. This lends to having a fairly long list of former members, many of whom still take pride in being associated with your fire department. It seems that each year, we lose a couple of members of our extended family. In 2007, three former firemen passed away. Bob Lang (Sr.), George Peabody (former Fire Chief) and Charles Senter. Each contributed in a different way to the organization and to the community. Their spirit of volunteerism and commitment to community cannot be easily measured. We can only appreciate that they saw it within themselves to take time away from friends and family to help strangers and neighbors
when needed.
This year we were presented with 2 significant opportunities to save the town money. The department submitted a request through the Federal Assistance to Firefighters grant program to replace and upgrade our Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA), compressor and bottle fill system. This request was approved for replacement of equipment at a cost which exceeded $178,000. The Firemens’ Association, through various donations, raised over $8,000 to meet the federally required 5% matching funds. The future cost avoidance represented by this grant means less revenue to be generated by the town.
Our second opportunity began last year when we began discussions with the 5 other towns that share our contracted ambulance service. After a year of negotiation, we collaborated to achieve a contract for service without an annual fee. Plaistow had been operating in this manner for 3 years. We were able to get all 6 towns to agree to work together to meet a mutually agreeable goal of limiting the cost for the ambulance contract to all parties. In effect, we have a 3 year contract, renewable out to 5 years, at no cost to the towns. Over the course of these agreements, we will have saved the town an estimated $200,000 based on the average annual fee we had been paying. Over the 6 towns, this figure is approximately $1,000,000. One of the key components to our agreement was there would be no decrease in the
services provided to the communities. Through this first year, that has proven to be the case.
Our department is classified as a ‘combination’ department, being made up of both fulltime staff and volunteers. Each relies on the other for our services to be successful. There are 3 fulltime staff who are charged with many of the routine day-to-day activities associated with being prepared to serve the community. These range from minor maintenance, inspections, training preparation and record keeping, in addition to the primary responsibility of answering emergency service calls. The volunteer or “call” membership is the larger staffing component and is the backbone of our emergency response capability. Regardless of the technology or equipment the Town provides us, the essence of our business requires competent, dedicated men and women to render the quality services you have come to
expect and deserve. Unfortunately, Plaistow is like many other similarly sized communities in that it is increasingly difficult to find those residents who can meet the challenges with being a member of a volunteer fire department. Out of every 5 people who look into becoming a member of the department, we will be fortunate to have 1 active member after 5 years. Our screening process has to ensure that any money we invest in equipping and training prospective members will be well spent.
Your fire department provides a myriad of services. Fortunately, Plaistow is following a national trend relative to major fires, in that we see fewer and fewer of them. However, we also continue to answer more calls for service than in the past. Our largest segment of response continues to be related to emergency medical services (EMS). These calls range from people that generally don’t feel well to people involved in traumatic motor vehicle accidents. Nearly 70% or our calls for service have an EMS component to them. Our members conduct routine rescue/EMS training in addition to our routine fire training to ensure our actions are proper and appropriate for the event. In addition to fire and EMS, we also provide hazardous materials incident intervention and fire prevention education and
inspections. Routine inspections of the various businesses and schools in town are conducted periodically to ensure the safety of employees as well as students, customers and/or business partners that visit these locations. We visit the schools and child care facilities in the community to teach children how to be safe in their homes.
Each year, Fire Prevention Week focuses on a specific area of fire safety. We will promote that theme in our programs delivered to the schools, as well as our annual Open House, held in October. This is an opportunity for you, the taxpayer, to meet the members of your department, see some of our capabilities and inspect the equipment you have provided to us. I encourage you to plan to stop by next October and take part in our Open House. If you can’t make the Open House, feel free to stop by the station during the day. We would be happy give you a tour of the facility and equipment.
Every year, we experience several delays in reaching a resident because of improperly located (or missing) house numbers. To help us find you if you need us:
· Check to make sure your home is marked with numbers that are clearly visible from the street.
· Numbers should be at least 4” high and of a contrasting color to the material they are attached to.
· If you have recently painted or sided your home or apartment, make sure the numbers were reinstalled appropriately.
Remember, if you call 9-1-1, we may not know exactly where you live. Help yourself before an emergency. Take the time to see how easy it is to spot your house in the daytime and at night. See if your neighbors’ homes are clearly marked. We will use their numbering to locate your house and vice versa.
Can you contribute some skill to the Fire Department without actually becoming a firefighter or EMT?
Yes, there is a volunteer opportunity in the federally sanctioned “Fire Corps”. This program is designed to bring various non-fire suppression talents into the local fire house. If you would like to be involved in our activities, have a unique skill and would like to contribute to the community, but aren’t interested in the firefighting or EMS aspects of our function, feel free to introduce yourself and we’ll see if there is a match of your talents to the needs of the department.
It is my goal to continue to develop and advance your fire department to meet the continually changing needs of the Town, in a fiscally responsible manner. We are constantly looking at ways to improve how we deliver our services to the Town, gaining efficiencies in our day-to-day operations and maximizing our resources at the Safety Complex to meet the demands of the community. If you feel you might be interested in joining the department, or would like more information regarding our activities, please feel free to contact us at the Safety Complex or call 382-5012. For more information regarding your Fire Department, please see our link on the Town’s website (www.plaistow.com).
Finally, the Town is extremely fortunate to have a group of citizens that are focused on giving so much back to the community. Without their dedication and sacrifice, the department would cease to exist as we know it. The hours spent responding to alarms is only the tip of the iceberg as it relates to participating in this organization. I am publicly thanking them for their continued service and dedication.
Summary of Fire Department Responses - 2007
Type |
# |
|
Type |
# |
Auto Fires |
10 |
|
Other (non-specific) |
45 |
Boiler/Heater Malfunctions |
5 |
|
Public Assists |
21 |
Carbon Monoxide Alarms |
5 |
|
Rescue |
509 |
Fire Alarm Activations |
95 |
|
Smoke Investigations |
16 |
Hazardous Materials Incidents |
5 |
|
Structure Fires |
8 |
Motor Vehicle Accidents |
115 |
|
Woods/Grass/Brush Fires |
21 |
Mutual Aid (Provided) |
25 |
|
Total Alarms |
891 |
Odor Investigations |
14 |
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Respectfully submitted,
John H. McArdle
Chief
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