Sunday, April 16, 2000Story last updated at 12:44 a.m. on Sunday, April 16, 2000
Photo Caption - Volunteer firefighters John Knoll (left) and James Misora check out their equipment at Fire Station 47, the only all-volunteer fire station in Duval County.
The state's increased training requirements are making it harder to keep volunteer firefighters. -- Reggie Jarrett/Special
Fires not volunteers' only fight - By Shannon Womble - Times-Union staff writer
Northeast Florida relies heavily on volunteers to respond to blazes and medical emergencies, particularly in rural areas, but new state training requirements have made recruiting them more difficult.
Last winter, the state changed the required 40-hour volunteer firefighter training to 160 hours, forcing departments to reconstruct curriculum to include emergency medical service, hazardous materials and leadership. The changes were in part an effort by the Florida Bureau of Fire Standards and Training to close the knowledge gap between paid and volunteer firefighters.
"The people who complete the new training are a better-quality firefighter and better skilled," said Frank McElroy, St. Johns County fire chief. "But because of the length of time it takes to complete the training, we might lose people who want to be fully functional quickly."
The volunteers who serve do so for various reasons, varying from community concern to a desire to become a paid firefighter. Some counties pay volunteers a small amount, but most of them work for free.
Photo Captions - Volunteer firefighters John Knoll (right) and William Blair work at Fire Station 47 in Duval County, on Ethel Road near Montgomery Correctional Center. Knoll, a Jacksonville volunteer firefighter for 25 years, says Jacksonville changed its volunteer service because of fears of safety and liability.
Fire officials say rural service has become the greatest challenge. The lack of recruits and limited resources make equipping rural areas difficult and hiring career firefighters even harder. It costs about $4,450 to outfit one firefighter, according to the National Volunteer Fire Council.
Clay County relies on 80 volunteers to reinforce its paid staff of 93 firefighters. Fire Chief David Casey said the department could use another 70 volunteers to improve response times to emergencies. The department's average response time is about 10 minutes in rural areas, though officials said in some areas it's less than five minutes.
"I think a lot of people take for granted that there are people out there volunteering their time to help them in a crisis and to put their lives on the line," Casey said.
In St. Johns County, volunteers make up four-fifths of the county's firefighting service, but officials said the numbers will start to decline.
"We are seeing nationally a decline in the number of people volunteering to be firefighters," McElroy said. "It's just that people are not able to do the job like they used to. There are more time constraints people have to deal with."
McElroy said St. Johns soon will have to hire more career firefighters to protect a growing population. In the meantime, St. Johns has increased incentives offered to volunteers, including paying each firefighter $6 per call and offering an annual monetary award for length of service.
Duval County has scaled back the use of volunteers in recent years, in part because Jacksonville's healthy tax base allows for the hiring of paid firefighters. On Jan. 1, the Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department opted to revamp how volunteers are used. Volunteer crews no longer receive pages when a fire or emergency occurs in their area. Instead, they must report to a fire station when they want to donate time and can ride out to fires only when there is room on a fire truck.
"It's no longer, 'I want to be a firefighter,' and they let you jump on the truck," said John Knoll, a Jacksonville volunteer firefighter for 25 years. "They [fire officials] are making it difficult to be a volunteer. Other counties aren't doing that, they can't, because they need the volunteers."
Knoll said Jacksonville opted to change its volunteer service citing fears of safety and liability, though no volunteer has ever been in a crash or other accident while responding to a call.
Despite the de-emphasis, Jacksonville's volunteers still serve the community. Each weekend, for instance, they man Fire Station 47, on Ethel Road near Montgomery Correctional Center. "There is a need up there, and it feels good to help people," Knoll said. "I signed on to do this because I like helping people, and this is the way I want to do it. I still carry my gear in my car, and I'll stop by a scene if it is nearby, but this [new] system is hard."
In Clay County, the resolve of volunteers is similar. "We aren't going away because the county can't afford to put career people out there in every situation," said David Ellsworth, Clay's volunteer coordinator. He said county officials recently purchased new gear for volunteers and revamped training to encourage teamwork. "We aren't second-class citizens anymore."