Dearborn Set To Add 12 Firefighters

DEARBORN, MI — A dozen new firefighters will be added next month by the Dearborn Fire Department as a result of steady increases in the number of emergency service runs. City council approved funding for the positions at a recent meeting, citing safety concerns for both the public and fire personnel. Dearborn will have 140 firefighters after the additions.

“Although our fire department continues to operate above nationally recommended standards, it has seen a significant increase in call volumes in the last few years,” Council President Susan Dabaja said at the April 11 meeting, according to a Dearborn Press & Guide report. “I think there’s a consensus here that this is something we’d all like to see and we need.”

International Association of Firefighters Local 412 President Jeff Lentz told council the number of EMS runs has risen dramatically. According to Lentz, a staff of 125 firefighters made 5,500 runs in 1985, 9,700 in 2002 with 121 firefighters and nearly 15,000 runs in 2016 with a staff of 128 firefighters, the newspaper reported.

“If you look at the gradual increase in the amount of runs that our fire department makes, it continues to grow,” Dearborn Councilman Brian O’Donnell said at the meeting, the Press & Guide reported. “That’s something we take very seriously in the city. I know it’s an investment, but I feel like it’s a good investment for long-term viability.”

Dearborn merged with the Melvindale Fire Department in 2013. Council President Pro Tem Thomas Tafelski questioned whether the cost structure with the city of Melvindale should be revisited. Dearborn Fire Chief Joseph Murray said Melvindale is still an operational benefit to the city, the newspaper reported.

“Dearborn is actually getting a lot of service from that connection,” Murray told the council, the Press & Guide reported. “It works both ways. Their call volume is relatively low so they have a lot of availability, especially when it comes to ambulances to back us up.”

Additional firefighters will help keep all parts of the city covered at all times, Murray said. Because of the high call volume, some areas of the city were not always covered all the time.

“This is not only increasing the safety of the citizens of Dearborn, it’s increasing our service we provide for them, and it’s also increasing the safety of the firefighters that are working for the citizens,” Murray said, according to the Press & Guide.

Photo courtesy of the city of Dearborn