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Recommendation to, by motion of the City Council, request City Manager and Fire Chief to provide an update at a City Council meeting on impacts of budget cuts on response times of the Fire Department since 2007 for the 5 call categories: All Fire Calls, Structure Fire Calls, "Bravo" Medical Calls, and both types of "Charlie" Medical Calls.
DISCUSSION
In the July 11,2012 report on Fire Department Response Data provided by Fire Chief Michael Duree to the Long Beach City Council, shows the response time data, based on the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) guidelines, in the City of Long Beach from 2007 through 2011 categorized into five specific call types, with the average response time for all fire calls in 2011 at 5:55 compared to 5:25 in 2007.
The 5 call categories are: (1) All Fire Calls- fire alarms, structure fires, non-structure fires, and other fire related calls; (2) Structure Fire Calls; (3) " Bravo" Medical Calls determined to be non life-threatening, at the time of dispatch, and are handled by engine companies and Basic Life Support (BLS) personnel; (4) "Charlie" Medical Calls determined to be life-threatening and are handled by the first arriving engine or truck; (5) "Charlie" Medical Calls ALS - determined to be life-threatening and handled by the first arriving Advanced Life Support (ALS) resource. The NFPA recommends a response time within 6 minutes for Structure Fires, All Fire Calls and Bravo medical calls, and within 8 minutes for first arriving ALS resource for Charlie Medical Calls.
Over the past several budget cycles, the Mayor and City Manager have recommended to the City Council that reductions in fire services. These cuts included a reduction in staffing levels (since 2010), and "rolling brownouts" -- taking an engine out of service at a different station each day -, or light-force duty at some stations. The chart below compares system-wide response time data from the 2007 through 2011 with the daily staffing levels...
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