By Tim Schmidt Record Managing Editor When the Warrenton Fire Protection District is dispatched to an emergency, it will have paid staff responding to every call. Last month, the fire district made …
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Warrenton fire switches to 24/7 paid coverage
Posted
By Tim SchmidtRecord Managing EditorWhen the Warrenton Fire Protection District is dispatched to an emergency, it will have paid staff responding to every call.Last month, the fire district made the switch to having paid firefighters on all shifts. Warrenton now has two full-time and at least one part-time firefighter on every shift.Previously, paid firefighters worked beginning 8 p.m. Sunday through 8 p.m. Friday. The weekends were covered by volunteers.Fire Chief Mike Owenby said the change was necessitated by a number of reasons, including a jump in emergency calls over the years and a dwindling number of volunteers.The fire district has over 600 calls annually, a significant jump from 2001 when crews responded to 319 incidents.The district had proposed a 15-cent property tax increase, but the ballot measure was rejected by voters in August 2014. Had it been approved, some of the additional funds would have allowed for four more full-time positions.The district’s last tax hike was in 2001.“We are getting busier and busier and it’s not slowing down at all,” Owenby toldThe Record. “With our volunteers, that is a lot of time in training and it’s a lot of time to put in. To ensure the best service we could provide to the taxpayers of the district, we needed to go this route. Unfortunately we don’t have the funding to hire people full time.”Nine part-time firefighters have been hired by the district, with the figure to increase by seven more later this month. Around 25 firefighters, representing volunteers and others who work for nearby agencies, applied. The part-timers primarily work 24 hours at a time, but the length of a shift can be reduced if needed to accommodate the extra personnel.“We have to ensure we have somebody available,” Owenby said.So far, there has been no trouble finding a third firefighter to fill the part-time positions on every shift. Response times to incidents also appear to be faster.“Obviously the time of dispatch to somebody out the door has been drastically reduced,” Owenby said.The fire chief did caution the personnel move may be temporary. The district is dipping into reserve funds to cover the expense of the part-time crew members, but that can only continue for up to two years.The fire district had applied for a federal grant to provide funds for additional full-time personnel, but was unsuccessful. Some of the cost may be offset by a new ordinance where persons who do not live or own property in the district are billed for emergency calls.Most of these calls are motor-vehicle accidents on Interstate 70 and amount to $125 per response, Owenby said. Since June, Warrenton has submitted $3,600 in claims.“It’s nowhere near where it will make up for what we are spending,” he said.The district encompasses 125 square miles in the county and employs eight, including six firefighters, a chief, and administrative assistant.Warrenton is the second department in the county to have paid firefighters on every shift.Wright City has nine full-time employees, comprised of six firefighters and, a fire chief and administrative assistant. Similar to Warrenton, two firefighters work every shift.Both fire districts also have mutual aid agreements with neighboring agencies helping boost personnel on emergency calls.
Warrenton firefighters work the scene of a recent tractor-trailer/ motor-vehicle accident on Highway 47. Last month, the fire district began having paid firefighters work every shift. Previously, volunteers manned the weekends, with paid crews available from 8 p.m. Sunday through 8 p.m. Friday. Tim Schmidt photo.
