Falmouth Officials Discuss Fire Staffing, New Station

FALMOUTH –The Falmouth Select Board recently discussed plans to remedy shortages of firefighting personnel which have led to issues in staffing the West Falmouth fire station.

They also addressed a proposal to consolidate the North and West stations into one Northwest station.

Fire Chief Timothy Smith provided a two-table summary of staffing projections for a period beginning in April and May of 2022, in which time they believe that voluntary overtime will no longer be needed to staff the Western station.

According to Smith, the fire academy is in the process of training new firefighters which would allow 18 to 19 firefighters per shift, up from the fourteen to sixteen firefighters currently being staffed.

“Once this hiring is completed and these personnel are trained, then that’s what our numbers are going to look like,” said Smith.

“We’re thankful that in April-May of 2022 we’re going to be at that point, and that Chief Smith and his command staff can make those decisions about allocating additional fire staffing which will include two firefighters on a regular shift at the West Falmouth station,” said Town Manager Julian Suso.

The meeting also discussed estimated response times in the proposed new station, as well as an upcoming decision on whether to allocate $25,000 dollars to facilitate a purchase and sale agreement in the event a suitable parcel is found.

There was spirited discussion at times during the meeting as some residents expressed frustration with current staffing shortages and concerns about potential response times from a single northwest location not being fast enough to ensure safety.

The town will further discuss the issue at the upcoming  Town Meeting on November 15.

By, Matthew Tomlinson, CapeCod.com NewsCenter

About CapeCod.com NewsCenter

The award-winning CapeCod.com NewsCenter provides the Cape Cod community with a constant, credible source for local news. We are on the job seven days a week.



CapeCod.com
737 West Main Street
Hyannis, MA 02601
Contact Us | Advertise Terms of Use 
Employment and EEO | Privacy