By Kevin Pearson
The Press Enterprise
HEMET, Calif. — The Hemet Fire Department is also getting an in-depth analysis.
On the heels of retaining a consultant to analyze the Hemet Police Department and decide whether keeping its own department is in the financially strapped city’s best interest, the city also is planning a thorough efficiency analysis of its fire services.
City Manager Brian Nakamura said the city is seeking a qualified consultant to provide a detailed overview of the Hemet Fire Department to ensure the department is being run as efficiently as possible.
Nakamura said he would have liked the two analyses to be performed simultaneously, but the person he originally selected for the Fire Department job backed out.
“This is to know that we are getting the best bang for the buck,” Nakamura said. “I’d like to move forward and get this done in the next couple of months.”
Hemet has one of the busiest fire departments in the region, due largely to its aging population and the amount of medical aid calls it receives. The department’s four stations handled more than 12,000 calls in 2010.
The City Council met last month with Joseph Brann, who will conduct a detailed analysis of the Hemet Police Department. Hemet is trying to decide whether keeping its own police force is the best option or whether it should consider other alternatives, such as contracting with the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department or forming a joint agency with neighboring San Jacinto, which now uses the Sheriff’s Department.
Nakamura said a switch to Riverside County’s Fire Department is not being actively discussed. Instead, the city is interested in making sure it is getting the most out of its investment and that the department is properly staffed and efficient.
“The Fire Department’s take is that we would welcome a study like that,” Fire Chief Matt Shobert said. “We’ve been through three or four years of deep, broad cuts.
“What any study is going to portray is that we are underfunded, understaffed, underequipped and undertrained and we need additional help and support.”
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