Staffing levels at the Dryden Fire Service are almost full.
Chief Rob Grimwood says seven new recruits have completed their initial recruit training and are now responding to calls.
Grimwood says that brings their total complement to 41, with four people waiting for COVID-19 restrictions to ease in order to finish their training.
The overall target for staff and volunteer firefighters is 45.
Grimwood says they responded to 56 calls for service in the second quarter of the year.
“We had some of our firefighters, who traditionally would be working in a workplace and unavailable, were assigned to work from home and it broadened their availability for us. So we did notice a bit of success in terms of more firefighters and a quicker response time.”
The first half of 2020 was a relatively quiet one for the Dryden Fire Service.
Firefighters responded to 112 calls for service, down 17 from the same period last year.
Grimwood says that number is something that has been trending across the province because of COVID-19 restrictions.
He stresses that has allowed them to complete needed training.
“The firefighters contributed almost 1,300 hours of training alone in the second quarter. We took firefighters and put them through a firefighter survival and rescue course, which is the first time that training has been offered in Dryden.”
Grimwood says firefighters completed 1,500 hours of training in all of 2019 and already they are over 2,100 for the first six months of this year.
Firefighter Turnout and Response Times:
1. Average number of firefighters per call
2019 4th Quarter: 11.8
2020 1st Quarter: 11.25
2020 2nd Quarter: 15.5
Target: 15
2. Percentage of applicable calls achieving 6 Firefighters in 14 minutes (rural standard)
2019 4th Quarter: 75%
2020 1st Quarter: 83%
2020 2nd Quarter: 97%
Target: 80%
3. Percentage of applicable calls achieving 10 Firefighters in 10 minutes (suburban standard)
2019 4th Quarter: 26%
2020 1st Quarter: 39%
2020 2nd Quarter: 52%
Target: 50%
4. Average response time of first apparatus (including command vehicle) to all calls
2020 1st Quarter: 7:42
2020 2nd Quarter: 6:47
Target: 8:00
5. Average response time of first apparatus (including command vehicle) to all calls within Dryden
2020 1st Quarter: 7:06
2020 2nd Quarter: 5:24
Target: 8:00
6. Average response time of first apparatus (not including command vehicle) to all calls
2019 4th Quarter: 10:07
2020 1st Quarter: 11:33
2020 2nd Quarter: 9:02
Target: 8:00
7. Average response time of first apparatus (not including command vehicle) to all calls within Dryden
2019 4th Quarter: 8:25
2020 1st Quarter: 9:22
2020 2nd Quarter: 7:34
Target: 8:00
8. Time of first defibrillator to patient (medical calls)
2020 1st Quarter: 6:40
2020 2nd Quarter: 4:59
Target: 6:00
