Shown above are David Raymond and Mike Spaulding - Dave works for the Fairfax Fire Department during the day, Monday through Friday and Mike works for Fairfax Rescue during the day, Monday through Thursday.
Michelle Monroe wrote the following article and it appeared in the Wednesday, June 13, 2012 Edition of The St. Albans Messenger
Longtime City fireman first Fairfax full-timer
Lt. Dave Raymond fills daytime gaps
By MICHELLE MONROE
Messenger Staff Writer FAIRFAX - Fairfax now has a full-time firefighter on duty from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. The Fairfax fire Department was, until now, entirely volunteer.
Lt. Dave Raymond began working at the Fairfax department last week. Raymond began his firefighting career as a volunteer with the St. Albans City Fire Dept. in 1999. He was hired as a full-time firefighter by the city in 2000 and left that department as a lieutenant as well.
Voters approved the new position as part of the municipal budget on Town Meeting Day.
A full-time person was needed during the day because 86 percent of Fairfax's volunteers work outside the community during the day, according to Chief Justin Hayes. "We actually had calls go unanswered during the day and we also had response times that
were less than acceptable," said Hayes.
As the economy has worsened, employers have been less willing and able to let employees leave during the workday to respond to
emergencies, according to Hayes. More than half, 55 percent, of the calls received by the fire department come in during week day hours, said Hayes, and the number of overall calls has increased roughly 17 percent per year since 2006.
Some volunteers, including Hayes, were facing "extreme burnout," said Hayes. On top of his full-time job, he was putting in 10-12 hours per week doing administrative work at the department.
Raymond will now take responsibility for keeping up with reports required by the state, as well as the equipment and apparatus maintenance previously done by the volunteers.
In addition, Raymond will be developing a fire safety education program for elementary and middle school students. The department also wants him to assist seniors with fire safety, such as helping them make certain they are able to exit their home safely in the event of a fire.
By being present during the day; Raymond will be able to accompany state building and safety inspectors.
Taking part in the inspections will enable him to relay information about new buildings and any concerns about what might happen should a fire occur at those buildings to the rest of the department, explained Raymond.
For automobile accidents, Raymond will respond immediately without waiting for other firefighters.
For other types of calls, Raymond may wait for as long as four minutes for other firefighters to join him before responding.
All the volunteers have radios, said Raymond, and call in to let him know if they are coming. Raymond also will be able to call in mutual aid. "Anything during the day; you're calling in several departments," said Raymond, simply to get the number of fire fighters needed to fight the fire.
Asked if the ongoing struggles between the city and the union about the staffing of the fire department contributed to his decision to leave, Raymond said it did.
"I came to realize there was far too big a difference between what the current administration and I felt was a safe level of protection for the community and the department," said Raymond. "That definitely helped me to make a decision when I was offered the
position."
Hayes is a former fulltime city firefighter, as is his brother, also a member of the Fairfax department.
In 2007, the city had 13 full-time firefighters, a chief and 12 firefighters with four firefighters per shift. There were 13 call force members at that time.
Since then, the city has reduced the force to three lieutenants and a fire marshal. The city is currently seeking to eliminate one of the lieutenant positions, and has hired a captain who will also be trained to conduct building inspections as part of the city's inspection program. Inspections are currently conducted only by the fire department.
