by David Flint
Thanks to volunteers, residents of towns like Stephentown get fire protection and emergency services at an amazing bargain rate. And without the volunteers there is no way the Town could afford it. Bill Jennings, Treasurer of the Stephentown Volunteer Fire Department and Secretary of the Board of Fire Commissioners, made this clear at an Open House tour of the Fire Station on Saturday.
The occasion was Stephentown’s participation in the first-ever Statewide Volunteer Firefighter Recruitment Effort scheduled as part of National Volunteer Week. The intent was to highlight the duties and rewards that come with being a volunteer firefighter and help raise public awareness about the need for volunteers.
Jennings pointed out that the annual budget of the Stephentown Fire District is less than $150,000 and residents are taxed only $136,000, about the same as what they pay to run the Town government, aside from the Highway Department. Providing fire and emergency services at this low rate is only possible, he said, because of the volunteers who give a few hours of their time to provide a service beneficial to the community.
The Stephentown Fire Department currently has 58 active members. There are also about the
same number of social members who participate in and help with social and fundraising events. Since 2005 the Department has added 18 new active members, three of them coming on board in 2011. Junior membership is open to those 16 years of age; full membership is at age 18.
Members receive both in-house and State fire training. To participate in fighting fires all members must take the Firefighter I course which is 87 hours given on evenings or weekends. To become certified for “interior” firefighting, they must also complete the 27 hour Firefighter II course. Certification as an Emergency Medical Technician requires completion of the EMT-Basic course (130 hours) and passing both a NYS practical exam and written exam. EMTs must also get re-certified every three years. Training courses are free to members. For courses taken at Hudson Valley Community College they are reimbursed.
The Department recognizes that members have their individual interests, preferences and abilities. They are never asked to perform above their competence, experience or comfort level. Ambulance drivers and fire police are needed as well as firefighters, pump operators, vehicle maintenance people and EMTs. Ambulance drivers are trained in-house, but they are also encouraged to take the Emergency Vehicle Operations Course (EVOC) when it is given in the area. Fire police are trained in-house and then required to obtain certification with the NYS fire police training course.
What are the benefits? Stephentown does not provide a pension for volunteer firefighters as do some volunteer fire districts, but they can take a $200 tax writeoff. Aside from that there is the valuable training that is received, and, as Department President Bob Adler puts it, the camaraderie and the good feeling that comes from knowing you are doing something for the Town and, “an extremely rewarding experience of community service and lasting friendship.”
Jennings noted that the problems of maintaining good fire protection and emergency services have changed considerably over the years. Few people actually work in Town now so not many responders are available in daytime hours.
Despite that, Jennings feels that fire protection is still working pretty well. One bright spot according to Jennings is that there are a lot fewer structure fires than there were 20 years ago. And even though more people are burning wood recently, the number of chimney fires is way down. Jennings believes this is due to stricter building codes and better enforcement. And with people adhering to the open burning laws, the number of brush fires responded to, which used to be 12 to 15 a year, is in recent years down to less than five, with only one brush fire so far this year.
But the critical need is in ambulance coverage. About 80% of calls are EMS calls. Emergency services personnel are required to complete a lot more training now and with an aging population there are many more calls. With more people working and working out of town, it is a continuing challenge for Stephentown, as with all rural communities. According to Jennings, Stephentown currently has 14 EMTs, the most they have had in quite a few years. In fact five EMTs have been certified in the past year, and there is one more in training. But there is still a critical need for ambulance drivers. Although some SVFD members are both EMTs and ambulance drivers, some EMTs do not drive and some firefighters can drive ambulance but are not EMTs. Getting an ambulance off the floor often falls to the same few. Combining both fire and ambulance calls, Jennings himself responds to about 100 calls a year; Assistant Chief-EMS Rik McClave goes out on about 200 calls a year. Jennings believes that at some point it may make sense to consider consolidating EMS services with Berlin or New Lebanon.
The Stephentown ambulance provides what is called Basic Life Support (BLS). Advanced Life Support (ALS) would be provided by a professional and paid company with paramedics such as Empire Ambulance or Mohawk Ambulance Service in the Capital District or County Ambulance in the Pittsfield area. Jennings said that Stephentown has had paramedics on staff but they are limited to BLS protocols when responding with the Stephentown ambulance service. The level of the call determines whether the paramedic service is alerted along with Stephentown’s ambulance. Heart related or breathing problems would be at the paramedic level. Jennings noted that until recently Empire Ambulance was keeping a crew at the Berlin Fire House. Now they would have to respond from Brunswick or Valatie and arrival time to Stephentown tends to be from 20 to 25 minutes. Providing appropriate ALS coverage, Jennings said, is a continuing and serious issue in Rensselaer County.
As part of the recruitment effort, Adler has drafted a letter to Town residents explaining the makeup of the Department, its events, benefits, duties and training requirements and encouraging people to join “the foremost civic group in town. Save a life, save a house, aid your neighbor. If you don’t, who will? We all lead busy lives, but we also make time for the fire department because it is right…Our civic pride says give something back to the community.”