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Corvallis Fire Department Suffers From Staff Shortage

www.corvallisadvocate.com

The Corvallis Fire Department says a staff shortage is affecting its operations.

Chief Roy Emery says the limited number of firefighters prevented the department from putting out a July 5 fire. It caused around one million dollars in damage at B AND R Auto Wrecking in south Corvallis and left the building gutted.

Three out of four fire stations operate under what’s called an “either or response” — meaning that station will operate a medic unit*or a fire engine. There aren’t enough resources to do both.

The Corvallis Fire Department has operated this way since 1993.

Douglas Baily, a division chief, says this isn’t a new problem.

“Now, our current chief has identified the either or response as a broken system,” says Baily.

Baily says the chief has been pressing this issue for about eight years. Based on the types of calls it receives most often, the department has proposed the following:

“Over several fiscals years, we would increase staffing to create a dedicated two person medic at station 2 and three, which right now are either or crews,” says Baily.

There would also be a day car, which would act as a medic unit. Then one station would be left as an either or crew.

Currently, there are only three firefighters at each station. If that station is responding to an incident and a second call comes in, that station can’t help.

A task force was created to help find new revenue sources to pay for unmet needs like these in Corvallis.

If successful, these funding requests will be presented to voters in 2017.

For KLCC News, I’m Kira Hoffelmeyer.

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