By Maria Herrera
The Sun-Sentinel
DELRAY BEACH, Fla. — Imagine being stranded inside a fiery building. Outside, only one firefighter is available to enter the building.
It’s an extreme-case scenario. But it’s what the fire department could have faced for the past two years with its beach area station.
Fire Station 2, on Andrews Avenue one block west of A1A, has been staffed with only two firefighters for one fire engine and two paramedics for one rescue truck.
This meant that if the rescue truck was being used elsewhere, one firefighter would have to stay behind to man the water pump and the other would have to rush into a building without backup.
But no longer. The city’s Fire Rescue Department recently came up with a plan to fully staff the station.
Assistant Chief Charles Stravino said there have been several incidents in which the fire truck arrived and only one firefighter could perform rescue operations, which is against department rules.
In one case, a police officer had to go inside a structure fire and rescue a victim, Stravino said.
Having only one firefighter to rescue victims or fight a fire “is a risk we no longer want to take,” Stravino said.
The new solution: to have the rescue personnel, who are also firefighters, ride with the fire engine to a fire or accident while another rescue truck is deployed from the nearest fire station.
Ideally, the station would have three firefighters on the fire engine and two on the rescue truck. Fully staffing the station is important because it serves the nearby town of Gulfstream on a contract.
“The plan is temporary,” Stravino said. “Our hope is that city will find the funding to have the three people on the engine.”
From 2001 through 2005, with property tax revenue from the real estate boom, officials were able to staff all fire engines with three firefighters and all rescue trucks with two paramedic-firefighters.
But as revenue declined, Fire Station 2 remained understaffed by one person.
Stravino added the plan was recommended by a labor-management team that meets to find creative ways to save money.
City Manager David Harden said it’s hard to say whether the city can come up with the money to fully staff the station.
He said he encourages department heads to suggest ways to save money and provide services with fewer people.
The city is likely facing a revenue shortfall this year.
“The question is how much,” Harden said.
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