Firefighter/Paramedic Ricardo Lenhart and Lt. Rick Simon prepare to leave Station 1 on a medic call. Depending upon the severity of the call, between two and five paramedics leave the station on every call.
Courtesy photo | city of Sidney
SIDNEY — “In 1999, Sidney’s Department of Fire & Emergency Services handled 2,986 calls,” Chief Chad Hollinger said. “That same year, one additional position was added to each duty crew bringing the daily maximum staffing to eleven personnel for each shift.”
“Now a quarter century later, the department has the same staffing level and is handling over 1,000 more calls per year,” Hollinger said. “Additionally, the ancillary demands on the staff of the department have increased significantly. For example, in 2023, department members interacted with over 6,000 citizens (adults and children) during 46 public education and prevention events.”
“The staff of Sidney’s Department of Fire & Emergency Services provides so much more for our community than just their primary responsibility of emergency services,” County Commissioner and Levy Campaign Chair Bob Guillozet said. Before he retired from the department, Guillozet was the department’s first deputy fire chief.
“From the chief to the rookies, they help to educate and train community members about fire safety,” Guillozet said. “They help to train the employees of local businesses on commercial and industrial safety. They are especially active in our schools, helping to train children and educators about fire safety. They also interact with homeowners, landlords, and residents in an effort to reduce the danger of fires and to help them understand the importance of having an escape plan should the worst occur.”
“One of the important factors I’ve learned in fighting fires is that synthetics, derived from petroleum and as a result, are more flammable and release far more energy as they burn,” City Councilmember Scott Roddy said. Roddy served for a number of years as a volunteer EMT and firefighter. He currently serves as an investigator for the Shelby County Coroner’s Office.
“The average home in 1970 was 1,500 square feet,” Roddy said. “Today the average home in Ohio is 33% larger than it was 50 years ago. Modern construction techniques use less raw material in their natural state and have greater dependence on pre-engineered, manufactured ‘systems’ that often replace more traditional materials.”
“While these construction techniques provide a number of benefits to the designer, contractor and owner of the building, they provide the fire service with a number of critical concerns when there is a fire in these buildings,” Roddy said. “We all realize each building is unique, but today’s larger homes are constructed with open interior floor plans. Stairways leading to upper and lower levels are typically open, exposing upper floors to rapid fire spreading.”
“While these open designs allow for more usable floor space for the inhabitants, the lack of interior dividers also increases the spread of fire,” Roddy said. “In addition, these large interior spaces are filled with petroleum-based contents and produce fires that grow much faster than their natural material predecessors.”
“While our first responders bear the burden of handling our community’s emergencies with professionalism and expertise, we need to help them with additional personnel,” Vice Mayor Steve Wagner and Levy Campaign Co-Chair said. “Our first responders support not just our own community, but also the greater region through membership and leadership on the county-wide hazardous materials team and regional technical rescue response.”
“Sidney’s first responders are well trained and versed in the many facets of their jobs,” Wagner said, “including our first-rate emergency medical services, fire suppression, hazardous materials, and the disciplines of technical rescue. Technical rescue includes vehicle and machinery extrication, high-angle rope rescue, confined space rescue, trench excavation, swift water rescue, and structural collapse.”
“The proposed levy will allow the department to increase their staffing levels for the first time in twenty-five years,” Sidney Mayor and Levy Committee Co-chair Mike Barhorst said. “As they respond to increasing numbers of calls for service, the likelihood of our first responders not being available to handle additional calls is increasing.”
“When a structure fire occurs, the entire duty crew is on scene and unavailable to handle additional calls,” Barhorst said. “Even if the full duty crew is available, the response of eleven personnel falls short of the national standard to have fourteen firefighters arrive at a single-family, residential fire.”
“We are now to a point that 28% of the time,” Barhorst said, “the station is empty because all personnel are out on emergency calls. It is only a matter of time before someone dies because there is no one available to respond.”
“If only two serious medical calls (five personnel at each) happen at the same time, only one person is left to protect our entire city until off-duty personnel respond from home,” Barhorst said. “This levy is not about equipment, apparatus, or buildings. It is about personnel.”
“Our department simply needs additional staff to meet the growing demands of our community,” Hollinger said. “We need additional people who are willing to serve and protect us. We need additional staff so that they can focus on the emergency at hand, knowing that sufficient staffing is available to handle the next call.”
“For Sidney’s Department of Fire and Emergency Services, this tax levy is not about anything other than additional staffing,” Hollinger said. “Having an additional four personnel per shift will enable us to better serve our community.”
