Comprehensive Fire/EMS Service Audit/Master Plan

Transcription

1 Comprehensive Fire/EMS Service Audit/Master Plan Developed for the Shelbyville Fire Department Shelbyville, Indiana Submitted by June 2015

2 McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. P.O. Box 190 Wonder Lake, IL Office (815) Fax (815) Copyright 2015 McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this document may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording or otherwise without the expressed written permission of McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 2

3 Table of Contents Executive Summary Department Overview Governance Leadership Fire Department Data Emergency Activity National Standards National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) - Non-mandatory Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) - Mandatory Insurance Service Offices, Inc. (ISO) - Non-mandatory Center for Public Safety Excellence - Non-mandatory Response Times Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP) Staffing Human Resources Facilities Apparatus Training Fire Prevention / Safety Education Fiscal Introduction Priority Ranking Description Governance and Management Fire Department Overview EMS Service History Emergency Activities What Constitutes Good Emergency Activities Data? Why is Relevant, Accurate, and Reliable Data Essential to Leadership? Recommendation Data Usage Which Data is More Accurate Dispatch or Fire Department? What is the Real Data Issue? Recommendation Citywide Quality/Assurance Program Recommendation Fire Department Quality/Assurance Program Consultants Use of Shelbyville s Data Recommendations Data Ten-Year Emergency Activity Totals Recommendation Ten Year Response Data Breakdown of EMS and Fire Call Totals Fire Service Response Model Recommendation Third Ambulance Incident by Nature Shelbyville NFIRS Data Comparing Shelbyville to National NFIRS Statistics McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 3

4 Emergency Service Trends Simultaneous/Overlapping Incidents Shelbyville Simultaneous/Overlapping Data Incidents by Time of Day Shelbyville Incidents Time of Day Incidents by Day of the Week Incidents by Month Call Distribution by District Identifying Call Distribution Using Township Sections Recommendation Distribution by District Call Distribution by Station Station Data Concerns Call Distribution by Shift Mutual Aid/Automatic Aid Partnership Opportunity Recommendation Partnership Opportunities Mutual Aid Box Alarm (MABAS) Summary of Emergency Activities Recommendation Data Summary Response Times / Public Safety Answering Point PSAP City and County Response Time Requires Teamwork Shelbyville EMS Response Response Time Components Response Time Components Control By: Technology Considerations Recommendation PSAP Creation Time Recommendation Turnout Time (Out the Door) Response Time Data Opportunities Fire Suppression/EMS System Operations Fire Department Operations Ambulance Service Operations Staffing/Staffing Methodology City of Shelbyville Fire Department Staffing Station Shift Staffing Recommendations Staffing Standards of Response Coverage Standards of Coverage Overview Determining a Fire Department s SOC Benchmarks National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Commission on Fire Accreditation International (CFAI) Key Elements of a SOC Plan SORC Integration with the Shelbyville FD Recommendations Community Risk/Standards of Response Coverage National/Industry Standards National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 4

5 NFPA 1710 or NFPA Recommendation NFPA Standard NFPA 1710 Suppression Team Shelbyville Fire Department Suppression Team Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Recommendation OSHA Insurance Service Offices, Inc. (ISO) ISO Changes Split Classifications What s Changed with the New Classifications? ISO New Fire Suppression Rating Schedule Fire Department Section Emergency Communications Section Water Supply Section Credit Point Changes Ongoing Evaluation ISO Point Scale Shelbyville Fire Department ISO Classification Center for Public Safety Excellence (CPSE) Recommendation CPSE Recommendation National Standard General Human Resources Fair Labor Standards Act FLSA 7K Exemption General Information Hours Worked vs. Hours Paid Kelly Days Sleep Time FLSA Shelbyville Averaging Pay Days Payroll Processing Recommendations -Fair Labor Standards Act Contract Review Recommendations - Union Contract Age & Years of Service Recommendations - Age and Years of Service Recruitment Recommendations - Recruitment City Handbook Review Facilities City of Shelbyville Fire Stations Shelbyville Fire Station # Recommendation Fire Protection Systems Station #1 Apparatus Bay Area Recommendation Fire Pole Station #1 Administration Area Station #1 Living Area McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 5

6 Recommendations Fire Station # Shelbyville Fire Station # Station #2 Apparatus Bay Area Station #2 Living Area Recommendations Fire Station # Shelbyville Fire Station # Station #3 Apparatus Bay Area Station #3 Living Area Recommendations Fire Station # Emergency Management Building Response Time Mapping GIS Mapping Station # GIS Mapping Station # GIS Mapping Station # GIS Mapping Station #1 and Station #2 Overlap GIS Mapping Station #1 and Station #3 Overlap GIS Mapping Station #2 and Station #3 Overlap Current Fire Station Locations Future Fire Station Needs Recommendation Fourth Fire Station Apparatus/Equipment City of Shelbyville Fire Department Apparatus Apparatus Ownership and Purchase Methods Recommendation Fire Apparatus Ownership Apparatus Maintenance Recommendation Fire Apparatus Maintenance Recommendations Fire Apparatus Records Apparatus Condition Odometers vs. Engine Hour Meters Apparatus Replacement Schedule Schedule for Fire Department Apparatus Replacement(s) Recommendations Fire Apparatus Sufficiency of Apparatus Recommendations Fire Apparatus Fleet Size Training Shelbyville Training Overview Competencies vs. Training Hours Recommendation Competency Testing Certifications Recommendation Officer Certifications Recommendation Instructor I Emergency Vehicle Driver Training Recommendation Drivers Certifications National Incident Management System Recommendation Identification of Certificates Training Risk Model McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 6

7 Recommendation Training Hours Training Data for Three-Year Study Period SFD Percent of ISO Required Training Hours/Year Training Calendar Recommendation Designated Training Times Recommendation Training Days Daily Shift Training Standard Sources Standard Lesson Plans The Liability of Poor Training Recommendation Documentation Supervisor (Fire Officer) Training Recommendation Officer Training ISO Training Points Awarded Recommendation ISO Training Points Training Library Recommendation Training Library Recommendations Pre-ire Plans Community Development & Growth Fire Prevention / Public Safety Education Shelbyville Fire Department Fire Prevention Company Inspections Recommendation Fire Prevention Self-Inspections Recommendation Self-Inspections Pre-Fire Plans Recommendations Fire Pre-Plan Shelbyville Public Safety Education Recommendation Public Safety Education Information Technology Recommendation Information Technology Fiscal/Capital Analysis City of Shelbyville Fire Department Budget Budget Funding Total City Revenues for Major Funds Total City Tax Expenditures Other Fire Department Revenue Ambulance Service Fees Recommendation Ambulance Fees Shelby County Ambulance Service Revenue Recommendations - Shelby County Ambulance Service Costs Fire Protection Contracts Recommendation - Fire Protection Contracts Racino Funds Recommendation - Racino Funds Fire Alarm Fees Recommendation - Fire Alarm Fees McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 7

8 Fire Grants Recommendation - Fire Grants Fire Department Budget Fire Department Operating Budget Fire Department Services Budget - Salaries and Benefit Costs Recommendation - Fire Department Services Budget - Salary and Benefit Costs Fire Department Services Budget Overview Emergency Ambulance Services Operating Budget Emergency Ambulance Services Budget - Salaries and Benefit Costs Emergency Ambulance Services Budget Overview Fire Department Capital Budget Recommendations Capital Budget Summary of Recommendations Appendix A -Data Requested - Fire/EMS Component Appendix B SFD 2014 Data Correction Process Appendix C PSAP 2014 Data Correction Process Appendix D: City Employee Handbook Review Table of Figures Figure 1: Ten Year Response Totals Figure 2: Three-Year Average of Percentage of EMS to Fire Figure 3: Shelbyville 3-Year Average Figure 4: Three-Year Simultaneous Averages Figure 5: Incidents by Time of Day Figure 6: Incidents by Day of the Week Figure 7: Incidents by Month 3 Year Average Figure 8: Fire Response District Map Figure 9: Ambulance Response District Map Figure 10: Section Numbering of Townships Figure 11: ESO & ThinkMap Calls by Stations Figure 12: Incidents by Shift 3-Year Average Figure 13: Mutual Aid Given & Received Figure 14: Fire Department Organizational Chart Figure 15: Staffing Levels per Day Figure 16: ISO National Classifications Figure 17: ISO Classifications Indiana Figure 18: Station #1 - Headquarters Figure 19: Shelbyville Fire Station # Figure 20: Shelbyville Fire Station # Figure 21: Shelbyville Emergency Management Building Figure 22: Four Minute Drive Time from Fire Station # Figure 23: Four Minute Drive Time from Fire Station # Figure 24: Four Minute Drive Time from Fire Station # Figure 25: Station #1 and Station #2 - Four-Minute Drive Time Overlap McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 8

9 Figure 26: Station #1 and Station #3 - Four-Minute Drive Time Overlap Figure 27: Station #2 and Station #3 - Four-Minute Drive Time Overlap Figure 28: Future Fire Station Site # Figure 29: Future Fire Station Site # Figure 30:2012 Members Training Hours Figure 31: 2013 Members Training Hours Figure 32: Members Training Hours Figure 33: Shelbyville Transportation Map Figure 34: Shelbyville Future Land Use Map Figure 35: Community Facilities including Fire Stations Figure 36: PSAP Correction May 2014 FD Calls Table of Tables Table 1: Report Priority Hierarchy Table 2: 2014 Data Differences FD to PSAP Table 3: Percent of Change in Call Totals Table 4: Breakdown of EMS to Fire for Three-Year Study Period Table 5: Shelbyville Fire Department 3-Year NFIRS Data Table 6: NFIRS National & Shelbyville Comparison Table 7: Simultaneous/Overlapping Incidents Table 8: Incidents by Time of Day Table 9: Incident by Day of the Week Table 10: Incidents by Month Table 11 Incidents by District Table 12: Three-Year Total Distribution by Station Table 13: Incidents by Shift 3 Year Average Table 14: City & County PSAP Table 15: SFD Response Time Data Submitted Table 16: Total FD Membership Table 17: Career Firefighters Rates by Population Protected, Table 18: Shelbyville FD Full Staffing 19 Personnel Table 19: Shelbyville FD Minimum Staffing 14 Personnel Table 20: Shelbyville FD Minimum Staffing 16 Personnel Table 21: NFPA 1710 Deployment Standard Table 22: Staffing Levels per Day Table 23: New ISO Split Classifications Table 24: ISO PPC Point Scale Table 25: National & Indiana ISO Classes Table 26: SFD ISO Points Each Category of Survey Table 27: FLSA Table for Fire Departments Table 28: FLSA Example 1 - No Overtime Earned Table 29: FLSA Example 2 - Overtime Earned Table 30: Overtime Calculation Table 31: Number of Kelly Days Provided Annually McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 9

10 Table 32: Years of Service Analysis Table 33: Age of Department Analysis Table 34: Mileage From and To Various Locations in Shelbyville Table 35: Calls to Area near I-74 and Fairlane Road Table 36: Percentage of U.S. Fire Departments with Number of Fire Stations Table 37: Station #1 Apparatus Table 38: Station #2 Apparatus Table 39: Station #3 Apparatus Table 40: Fire Department Five-Year Replacement Plan Table 41: Years of Service for Fire Department Vehicles Table 42: Number of Pumper Apparatus in Communities with Populations 10,000 to 24, Table 43: Number of Aerial Apparatus in Communities with Populations 10,000 to 24, Table 44: SFD Percent of ISO Required Training Hours Table 45: 2014 Mandated Training Topics Table 46: NFPA 1001 Basic Training Topics Table 47: Supervisor Training Program Table 48: ISO Points Earned for Training Table 49: SFD Library Training Contents Table 50: Shelbyville New Construction Permits & Values Table 51: Public Safety Education Contacts Table 52: Organizations Receiving Safety Education Table 53: Total City Major Fund Revenues 2012 to Table 54: Total Annual City Appropriations Table 55: Police and Fire Department Budgets as a Percentage of Total City Budget Table 56: Total Dollars and Percentage for Fire and Ambulance Services Table 57: Shelbyville Ambulance Fees Table 58: Ambulance Service Fees 2012 to Table 59: Sample Quarterly Shelby County Ambulance Service Fees Table 60: Annual Revenue from Shelby County for Ambulance Service Table 61: Annual Townships Fire Protection Contract Revenues Table 62: Fire Alarm Fees Table 63: Annual Fire Department Services Budget 2012 to Table 64: Annual Ambulance Service Operating Budget 2012 to Table 65: Annual Fire Services and Ambulance Service Operating Budgets 2012 to Table 66: Total Annual Fire Department Services Budget Table 67: Salaries and pension as a percent of annual fire department budget Table 68: Total Annual Emergency Ambulance Services Budget Table 69: Ambulance services salaries and pension - Percent of annual budget with health insurance costs Table 70: Ambulance services salaries and pension - Percent of annual budget without health insurance costs McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 10

11 Executive Summary McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. was commissioned by the City of Shelbyville to conduct a Comprehensive Fire/EMS Service Audit/Master Plan of the Shelbyville Fire Department. The study is a comprehensive assessment of the City of Shelbyville Fire Department and includes a review of the current fire department operations, fire station(s) locations and conditions, apparatus and equipment needs, department training, policies and procedures, use of technology, emergency responses and activities, fiscal budget, human resource policies, mutual aid, fire prevention and inspections, and the fiscal limitations on emergency response. The final report is an audit/master plan that addresses current and future opportunities while ensuring the provision of fire/ems services in the most cost-effective and efficient manner. This document is a book of opportunities for future planning of fire and EMS service delivery. Five consultants were assigned to this project each handled topics that were appropriate to their specific skills and expertise. It is important to call to the attention of the reader that the intent of the consulting team was to write a report that identified areas of excellence as well as areas that had opportunities for improvement. Department Overview The Shelbyville Fire Department currently provides fire protection services to the City of Shelbyville and to three Townships in Shelby County under contracts with the Townships. The Shelbyville Fire Department also provides EMS paramedic level services to the entire area and population of Shelby County, which accounts for an area of about 412 square miles. The area protected for fire protection is about 69 square miles including square miles in the City of Shelbyville and include the following communities: City of Shelbyville - Fire Services Township of Addison - Contract for Fire Protection Township of Marion - Contract for Fire Protection Township of Shelby - Contract for Fire Protection McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 11

12 At the time of the study there were 60 sworn and civilian members who provided fire suppression, fire prevention, public safety education, special teams, and emergency medical services at the paramedic level, which is the highest level of pre-hospital care available. Governance The City of Shelbyville operates under a Mayor/Council form of government. The Mayor's office is the executive branch of city government. The Mayor is the chief executive for the City of Shelbyville. The City Council is comprised of seven (7) council members that constitute the legislative and governing body of the City. The Mayor by the authority of the City of Shelbyville Code of Ordinances Chapter appoints the many city department heads including the fire chief who all serve at the pleasure of the Mayor: The members of the Board of Public Works and Safety are the Mayor and two voters of the City who are appointed by the Mayor and serve at the pleasure of the Mayor. The Board of Public Works and Safety is established by the City of Shelbyville Code of Ordinances Chapter and serves as the chief administrative body of the City and under the ordinance has control of the day-to-day operations of the following some City departments including the fire department and City ambulance service. Using a prepared list of questions, the consultants conducted interviews with the Mayor, all the members of the City Council, the City Clerk Treasurer, the City Attorney, the Building and Planning Director, the City Engineer, members of the Board of Public Works and Safety, the Chief of the Police Department, the City Financial Consultant, some of the members of the Ambulance Board, and representatives of Shelby County Commissioners. In addition, consultants interviewed many of the officers and members of the City of Shelbyville Fire Department. In summary, the officials interviewed provided a lengthy list of shortcomings and weaknesses about the Fire Department; but there were more agreements on the positive aspects of the City of Shelbyville Fire Department. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 12

13 Leadership The success of any organization is directly related to the ability of their leaders. Leadership is not one individual but a management team committed to the success, in this case, the success of the City of Shelbyville Fire Department. The Consultants identified that there are a lot more good things with the Shelbyville Fire Department then there is wrong. What was found is a dedicated group of people providing good service to the community. The department has multiple opportunities to move the organization from good to great; however, the key component to this issue lies within the leadership and their ability to develop a strong leadership team and strong relationships with the elected officials. Fire Department Data In most studies, the consultants have emergency response activity data within two weeks of receipt of the data request. The data provided by a fire department is crucial for the consultants, as it is the basis for the majority of recommendations. At the onset of the study the Fire Department leadership advised the consultants that they believed the 2012 and 2013 data was inaccurate and misrepresented the department s emergency activities by 10% to 15% lower than actual response. In 2014, the department changed data management systems from Firehouse Software to ESO Solutions. The Chief indicated that he felt confident that ESO 2014 data was a true representation of the department s emergency responses. With Shelbyville, nearly three months after receiving the initial data from the fire department, the consultants received multiple submissions of revised data and discovered that the issue of inaccurate data is considerably more complex. It is not an unfair question for any City official, council, even a citizen to ask how many calls the Fire Department responded to within a given period of time and expect that the number can be validated and fit the definition of good data as defined below by the International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC). McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 13

14 Emergency Activity During the years , the Shelbyville Fire Department responded to an average of 3,902 fire and emergency medical (EMS) calls. EMS responses comprised the greatest number of calls annually or an average of 83.7%. The amount of EMS calls within Shelbyville is consistent with the number of EMS calls in the fire/ems organizations that the consultants have conducted studies in the past. The average percentage of EMS calls as a percent of total calls for Shelbyville is about 15.0% more than the national average for fire/ems departments. One must remember that the average number of emergency calls on an annual basis is based on data that could not be verified consistently and as was mentioned is a complex issue. When reviewing the Shelbyville fire data, there is nothing in Shelbyville s statistics compared to National, Midwest Region, or State of Indiana that would be of significant concern. The Shelbyville Fire Department should be commended for the lower than average of the National responses to false alarms. Over the three-year study period, the department experienced different rates of percentages simultaneous emergency calls. The Consultants believe that when simultaneous calls occur more than 20% of the time annually, emergency response resources may need to be increased. In the case with Shelbyville the consultants do not believe the number of simultaneous emergency calls would require additional response resources at this time. There was very little variance as to when calls occurred during the time of day, although the fewest calls occurred between midnight and 5:00 AM; when statistics indicate the more serious fires occur. Friday was the busiest day of the week and Sunday the slowest; and August and December the busiest and February the slowest when evaluating the types and number of calls by month. Based on the issue of data not being accurate the consultants believe this is a critical area of improvement for the fire department to focus on for improvement. Based on the conversation with the Fire Chief and the Mayor regarding the issue of data the consultants believe that both of them understand the importance of making improvements to data collection a priority. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 14

15 National Standards There are numerous national standards and codes the Shelbyville Fire Department must be aware of, although most are not mandatory. When a serious incident occurs (such as a serious injury or death of a firefighter), departments are typically judged by these standards. The Consultant s used these standards to evaluate the operations of the Shelbyville Fire Department. National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) - Non-mandatory The National Fire Protection Association creates and maintains private, copyrighted, standards and codes for usage and adoption by local governments. NFPA was formed in 1896 by a group of insurance firms; their mission was to reduce the worldwide burden of fire and other hazards on the quality of life by providing and advocating consensus codes and standards, research, training, and education. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) - Mandatory The Federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) standard on respiratory protection requires that self-contained breathing apparatus be used in a hazardous or potentially hazardous atmosphere during interior structural firefighting. Firefighters entering a burning structure must do so in teams of at least two and at least two other fully equipped and trained firefighters must be on standby. This rule is commonly referred to as the two in-two out. Insurance Service Offices, Inc. (ISO) - Non-mandatory The ISO Public Protection Classification program is designed to help establish fire insurance premiums for residential and commercial properties based in part on community s fire protection services. ISO ratings do not provide a comprehensive assessment of staffing, deployment and service delivery. ISO is not an industry standard, it is an advisory group. Fire departments are rated on a point system with capability of the fire department (50 percent of the total points); water supply (40 percent); and emergency communications (10 percent). With the revised ISO process in 2013, 5.5 points are also being credited for community risk reduction. The inclusion of this new section with the extra points allows credit for communities that have effective fire prevention practices. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 15

16 The Shelbyville Fire Department has split classifications of 3/9 for their ISO rating. The split classification of 3/10 indicates areas covered that are within 5 road miles of a fire station and within 1000 feet of a fire hydrant have a Class 3 rating. A class 10 ISO rating applies to properties beyond 1,000 feet of a fire hydrant, but within 5 road miles of a fire station. Center for Public Safety Excellence - Non-mandatory The International Fire Chief s Association (IFCA) has developed a program, Center for Public Safety Excellence (CPSE). The CPSE measures the quality and performance of a particular fire/ems service agency and will award national accreditation to those departments that pass the stringent criteria. The consultants recommend that any future effort by the Shelbyville Fire Department to demonstrate competencies should be channeled towards the CPSE accreditation. Response Times Response time components begin with the time a person detects an emergency and calls 9-1-1; to the time the fire and or EMS service arrives at the scene. One must have an understanding of the five components of response time to fully analyze that information. The components are: 1. Detection Time: The time it takes to detect the emergency incident and dial Notification Time: The time from when the call is received by dispatch to the time the department is notified. 3. Turnout Time: The time it takes personnel to prepare and leave quarters after notification. 4. Travel Time: The time the first fire apparatus leaves the station to the time it reports on the scene. 5. Mitigation Time: The time the first apparatus arrives at the scene to the time when actual extinguishing/treatment efforts begin. Data (times) was obtained from both the Shelbyville Fire Department and the dispatch center. Due to the fact the information received was not identical in nature, the Consultants were not able to analyze the information and determine actual response times for emergency calls. All fire McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 16

17 professionals understand the importance of response time and many have lived the results of not being there just a few seconds sooner. Yet many fire departments do not routinely use response time data as a management tool to address opportunities to improve services. Unfortunately, this appears to be the case for the SFD. The data provided is inconclusive, contradictory, or no data available. The consultants do understand that if the dispatch centers were using Priority Medical Dispatching (PMD) for Emergency Medical Service calls that most likely response times would be improved, but more importantly sending the proper resources from the Shelbyville Fire Department on EMS calls would be improved. By using Priority Medical Dispatching sending an engine on every EMS call would not be necessary because the resources would be dispatched based on the need for EMS service levels as determined by the dispatcher using the PMD system. Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP) Although the City and County are two separate PSAPs, they share the same facility (sitting backto-back), utilize the same CAD systems, all calls both landline and cellular come directly to them, utilize the same back-up PSAP in an emergency (Hancock County), share extremely similar SOGs and policies, require the same certifications, share the same frequencies (fire/ems), cross the room to assist the other PSAP when overloaded, utilize the same work schedule, and both PSAP supervisors are required to work shifts as a dispatcher. Yet they remain two separate PSAPs with copious redundancies; the only obvious difference is salaries. With the consultants background it would be most difficult to argue against the benefits of consolidation of PSAPs; however, that is outside the scope of this study. Staffing The Shelbyville Fire Department is classified as a career fire department. It is the only career fire department in Shelby County. The fire department consist of 62 personnel including two McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 17

18 non-sworn personnel. The fire department operates three 24 hour shifts with nineteen (19) fire department members assigned to each 24 hour shift. When firefighters are off duty, a minimum number of firefighters are needed on duty in order to operate the basic fire and EMS services that the department provides. This number is the minimum staffing number and for the Shelbyville Fire Department the minimum staffing number is fourteen (14) members on duty. The fire department management believes that resources are lean as it pertains to staffing. At the heart of study is the issue of staffing and the impact it has on service delivery. The need to balance adequate resources (staffing) and the fiscal capabilities of the City is difficult at best. The consultants do agree with the fire department that there is a need to staff a third Med Unit on each shift, but this could be accomplished by reallocating current resources. The consultants would not recommend any additional staffing for the Fire Department until data collections methods improve to the status that the justification for additional staffing is available and accurate. The consultants would not recommend any additional staffing for the Fire Department until the issues with allowing the granting of Kelly Days to fire department personnel has been addressed since the number of Kelly days being provided to all members of the Fire Department now equal over six full-time positions in equivalent time worked. The issue of Kelly Days is further addressed in the Human Resources section. Human Resources A number of areas are covered within the human resource section. The areas that need to be highlighted center around the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). It is not unusual to find errors in administering FLSA as it has not only evolved over the years, but is confusing when applying to fire departments. There are three areas that the City needs to ensure its FLSA compliance - averaging pay checks; calculation of overtime; and use of Kelly days. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 18

19 The FLSA allows fire departments to pay overtime based on a 7 28 day cycle. The Shelbyville Fire Department has a 28 day cycle; thus, within a 28 day period, the employee would be paid overtime for hours worked beyond 212 hours. A 40-hour employee is paid overtime for hours worked beyond 40 hours. What makes calculating overtime difficult in fire departments is that most institutions pay bi-weekly. What fire departments tend to do is to average pay over the 26 pay periods. Unfortunately, FLSA does not allow averaging and as such, the first bi-weekly pay will contain only hours worked; and the second pay period would be hours worked plus overtime earned within the 28 day period. This may not necessarily align nicely with pay periods. It is therefore recommended that payment of an averaged pay plus an average overtime cease immediately, and the department work with payroll to calculate payroll in accordance with the statute. A firefighter on a type of schedule works 2,912 hours per year as compared to a 40 hour employee who works 2,080 per year. Many fire departments feel they need parity with the police department which has different education, skills and responsibilities and in the case of Shelbyville, calculate the hourly wage the same as police. Taking the annual salary and dividing by 2,080 rather than 2,912. This results in a higher payment of overtime. Therefore, the recommendation is to calculate overtime based on hours worked annual salary divided by 2,912. Finally, the department utilizes a Kelly Day. A Kelly Day was implemented to put a day off within the cycle that has the greatest number of work days to minimize overtime. The Shelbyville fire department allows individuals to work the Kelly day and calls individuals back into work based on Kelley day seniority thus defeating the purpose of the day and costing the City higher payroll costs. If Kelly Days are to continue, they should be days off designated by management on the work cycle that has the greatest number of hours in order to reduce overtime. The consultant has made a number of suggestions for future contract negotiations, and realize that these are only suggestions. Changing of contract language requires negotiations and the combination of language and dollars is a balance. Other than the Fire Chief, the human resource McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 19

20 director and a labor attorney should be at the table not an elected official to ensure consistent language throughout the City and that it benefits both the employee and the City. Finally, the fire department should not be able to act as an independent department. It needs to coordinate activities with human resources, payroll and finance. This is a City department not an independent department. The consultant has a number of recommendations for recruitment, promotions, performance evaluations, succession planning and has reviewed the City s employee handbook for omissions and changes. Facilities The Shelbyville Fire Department provides fire and EMS services from three fire stations located in the City of Shelbyville. Two of the fire stations were constructed in recent years and the third fire station was constructed in 1984 in the base of a city water tower and has room for only one fire engine. Unfortunately as time goes on and as communities change the locations for fire station may change also. Currently two fire stations are located near the City boundaries and are not in the best locations for response times and in fact have a large overlapping response districts. All three fire stations are in very excellent condition and any needs for improvements have been identified in the facilities section. The Fire Chief of the Shelbyville Fire Department believes that an additional fire station is required to serve the area of the City of Shelbyville near Interstate 74 and the Fairlane Road interchange. This is the area located near the Indiana Grand Racing and Casino complex. There are some areas within the response area near Interstate 74 and Fairland Road that experience extended response times. Currently the time to respond to the area near the Indiana Grand Racing and Casino complex is 8 to 10 minutes, but the call volume is very low. The issue of where such a fire station would be located to best serve the area is an excellent question. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 20

21 The consultants did look at two possible fire station locations for a fourth fire station north of Interstate 74. The issue with both of these potential sites is that the areas of the City of Shelbyville that they would serve are very limited and both sites are located on or near the border of the City. The majority of the areas each site could reach in a four-minute drive time are not located in the City. The consultants are recommending that a new fire station not be constructed at this time to serve the Northwest area of the City, but as the area develops and as the number of emergency calls in this area increase, then the need for a fire station can be reevaluated. Apparatus The City of Shelbyville Fire Department currently operates three ambulances, three engines, two quints/aerial ladders, and a number of other vehicles. The department houses three boats and a boat trailer that are owned by Shelby County Sheriff's Department. On engine and one quint are maintained as reserve apparatus. The fire department will be taking delivery of two new fire engines in fall 2015, which will replace two older fire engines. One of the current fire engines, the 2005 Pierce will become the reserve engine when the new engines are placed in service. The need to permanently maintain two aerial ladder apparatus in the City of Shelbyville fleet is not necessary based on the size of the community. We are not recommending taking the 1993 Sutphen Ladder #1 out of the fleet inventory at this time, but if it becomes a major problem due to maintenance costs then it should be removed from the fleet. Strong consideration should be given to operating Engine 4 out of Fire Station #2 as the primary fire response vehicle, except for target hazard occupancies. This is known as cross-staffing vehicles and it is common in many fire departments the size of Shelbyville. When the time comes to replace Ladder #2 it should not be maintained in the fleet as a reserve aerial ladder as we are recommending that only one aerial ladder be maintained permanently. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 21

22 The City and Fire department should consider the possibility of remounting the three ambulances on new chassis when the vehicles are due for replacement. The costs savings would benefit the city and the taxpayers. With the buyout at the end of the five-year lease purchase there is a strong possibility the ambulances could be used for another couple of years before remounting is completed. When the lease purchase agreements end on the current ambulances the City and Fire Department should purchase a new ambulance on a lease purchase. With the current three ambulances being purchased and eventually remounted there would then be four ambulances in the fleet. If the goal of the city and the department is to have three ambulances in service, it will be necessary to have four ambulances in the fleet. Training The consultants performed a review of the department s training program that included the review of training policies, goals, schedules, training and certification records, training library, training facilities and the ISO Summary Report prepared by ISO, dated January 30, The consultants have discovered there are numerous opportunities to improve the SFD training program. The responsibility for developing and delivering the SFD training program is given to the department s Deputy Chief. The Deputy Chief oversees the creation of annual training goals, and training calendar. There are two Training Officers assigned to each shift: one for fire topics, the other for EMS topics. Instructors are assigned to teach the respective classes based upon their areas of expertise. There remain multiple opportunities to improve components of the training program. The greatest challenge to all involved in the delivery of training is to keep the subjects taught up to date and interesting. The time period for which training is delivered, varies among the three shifts. Training should be scheduled in a uniform fashion, where it is delivered typically the same time, each day, regardless of the shift working. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 22

23 The Deputy Chief along with the Fire Chief, Shift Commanders and shift training officers should review personnel training hour and certification records on a regular basis to assure members are on track to achieve annual training goals. Some members did not achieve the annual goal of required training hours; this shortcoming could be addressed by including Sunday within the monthly training calendar. All individuals, whether in the position a Shift Commander or Company Officer, or acting in those positions, should have had training in the use of the incident command system, fire ground management, and supervisory training before being placed in those positions. Management and leadership training should be an on-going part of the Roselle training curriculum. Fire Prevention / Safety Education All fire inspection and prevention activities in Shelbyville are handled by a single person assigned to the fire prevention bureau. The fire prevention inspector is a civilian employee working a 40-hour week Monday through Friday. Activities of the fire prevention inspector include: regularly scheduled fire inspections, plan reviews, inspecting special venues such as the fairgrounds for special events, and working with state and local inspectors on new and renovated construction projects. These activities require a large portion of time and are primary function of the SFD fire prevention bureau activities. In addition, accompanying state inspectors on educational occupancies as well as health care facilities is also a part of the duties. It was reported that there are approximately 1,300 inspectable occupancies located within Shelbyville s corporate boundaries and that the majority are an assortment of small to mid-size business, commercial, mercantile and multi-family occupancies which generally do not require a detailed, lengthy fire inspection. In 2014 the fire prevention inspector conducted approximately 700 inspections and/or reinspections representing 53.84% of the total occupancies in Shelbyville. These fire inspections McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 23

24 were not conducted based on risk, hazard level or any particular occupancy. Most fire prevention codes require that each occupancy be inspected annually and that records need to reflect the conditions found, violations noted, and when corrective action was taken. Fiscal The fire department is funded primarily by the city General Fund Revenue Budget. The city did hire a Financial Advisor Services within the past few years and this firm has developed a Financial Sustainability Plan for the city with expense and revenue projections for the entire city operations for the next few years. Revenue projections include the annual property tax rate and the amount of revenue generated by the property tax dollars and other city fees. The fire department has a budget for fire services and a separate budget for ambulance services. For the time period of 2012 to 2015 the total amount of dollars for fire and ambulance services was about 37.53% of the total city budget. The fire department does generate revenue from a number of sources, with the primary source of revenue being ambulance transportation fees. During 2012 and 2013 the annual amount collected for ambulance fees was about $860,000. The city changed ambulance billing service companies in mid-2014 and it is expected that the ambulance fees should generate over $1 million annually for 2014 and the future years. Another source of revenue for the fire department are the fees collected from Shelby County for operating the ambulance service throughout the county outside of the city limits. The cost sharing formula for providing this ambulance service for the county has been in existence for a long time and the consultants are recommending that the fees charged by the city to the county be reevaluated. The consultants are recommending that the city consider assuming complete control of the ambulance service operation and simply contract with the county for the actual costs of providing the ambulance service. The Shelbyville Fire Department contracts with three townships for fire protection services and the revenue generated on an annual basis for providing this service is about $66, McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 24

25 The Shelbyville Fire Department also receives about $150,000 annually from Racino funds. The funds are used to offset the costs of fire department equipment and vehicles. The Fire Department has applied on an annual basis for Assistance to Firefighters Grant from FEMA on an annual basis, but has not been successful in being awarded a grant. For the year 2012 to 2015, the fire department budget for fire and ambulance services has been just less than $3 million to about $3.3 million. The amount of the annual budget used for salaries and pension average between 88% and 91% of the total budget. The consultants found that the Fire Department is paying a substantial amount of dollars annually for overtime for various reasons which were addressed in the Human Resources section. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 25

26 Introduction The City of Shelbyville is a municipality located southeast of Indianapolis in Shelby County, Indiana. Shelby County covers about 412 square miles and had an estimated population of about 44,436 in The City of Shelbyville is located in the south central section of Indiana about twenty-six miles southeast of Indianapolis, 114 miles north of Louisville, and 100 miles northwest of Cincinnati. The City of Shelbyville is the largest city in the County and has a population estimated at about 19,253 in The City of Shelbyville covers an area of about square miles. In 2010, there was an estimated 8,658 housing units located in the City of Shelbyville. From it was estimated that home ownership was about 54% of the housing unit inventory. From it was estimated that the median household income was $38,578, which is substantially lower than the median household income of $48,248 for the entire State of Indiana. The City of Shelbyville is served by Interstate 74 and by two state highways, which are SR 44 from east to west and SR 9 from north to south. The City of Shelbyville is comprised of a mixture of housing styles ranging from single family detached homes to larger historic homes in the area of downtown. There are a number of new subdivisions located on the southeast part of the city. Rental properties are common throughout the City. The City of Shelbyville has several business districts located within the City. The primary districts include the following: Downtown Shelbyville Miller Avenue on the west side Strip development along SR 44 (east) Commercial development along East Broadway and Washington Streets in the downtown area Highway commercial at the SR 9 / I-74 and the SR 44 / I-74 interchanges McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 26

27 The commercial highway district along SR 44 (East) near the I-74 interchange is one of the newer and more active commercial areas. The Fairland Exit Interchange is also an area experiencing significant growth in commercial development. As the road improvements are completed in this area it is expected to result in more industrial development. The City of Shelbyville has a number of larger facilities within the community that include the Shelbyville Municipal Airport, located along I-74 near the Fairland Exit. There is currently is a 5,000 feet by 100 feet North/South runway as well as a 2,700 foot turf, crosswind runway. The National Guard also maintains a facility primarily for helicopters adjacent to the airport. Other facilities within the community include the Indiana Grand Racing and Casino complex, the Indiana National Guard facility, manufacturing facilities, industrial parks, and a number of large multi-family dwelling complexes. Shelbyville has several industrial areas of various sizes and intensities that will be discussed in more detail later in this report. The Shelbyville Fire Department is a fully paid career fire department with 60 staff members. The department operates from three fire stations with two aerial ladders (quints), three engine pumpers, three ambulances, one brush truck, two squads, one station car, one swift water vehicle, a special operations vehicle, a fire inspector vehicle and three chiefs vehicles. The Shelbyville Fire Department also houses three boats and a trailer owned by the Shelby County Sheriff s Department. A quint, or quintuple combination pumper, is a vehicle that services the dual purpose of an engine and an aerial ladder truck. The name quint is derived from the Latin prefix quinque, meaning five, and refers to the five functions that a quint provides: pump, water tank, fire hose, aerial ladder device, and ground ladders. The City Council contracted with McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. to conduct this study. The study is a comprehensive assessment of the City of Shelbyville Fire Department and includes a review of the current fire department operations, fire station(s) locations and conditions, apparatus and equipment needs, department training, policies and procedures, use of technology, emergency responses and activities, fiscal budget, human resource policies, mutual aid, fire prevention and inspections, and the fiscal limitations on emergency response. The final report is McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 27

28 an audit/master plan that addresses current and future opportunities while ensuring the provision of fire/ems services in the most cost-effective and efficient manner. The consultants interviewed many of the officers of the City of Shelbyville Fire Department and many members of the fire department. In addition, the consultants interviewed all the members of the City Council, the City Clerk Treasurer, the City Attorney, the Building and Planning Director, the City Engineer, members of the Board of Public Works and Safety, the Chief of the Police Department, the City Financial Consultant, some of the members of the Ambulance Board, and representatives of Shelby County Commissioners. The consultants met with the Fire Chief, Deputy Chief, EMS Chief, Fire Inspector and many fire department members. The consultants would like to thank all of the individuals who participated in the interviews, as the information obtained from the interviews was valuable in the evaluation of the current situation and in the development of our recommendations. Everyone who was interviewed was very professional and spoke highly of the quality of the fire and EMS services provided by the City of Shelbyville Fire Department. During the course of the interviews a number of perspectives were brought to the attention of the consultants. These perspectives are based on the beliefs of individuals and there is an old saying that perspectives are reality which is probably true for some of these individuals. All of the government and city officials shared the belief that the City of Shelbyville Fire Department provides quality fire and EMS services for the citizens and the communities that are served. Another perspective shared with the consultants by a number of government and city officials was that something was going on in the fire department with the use of Kelly Days and how the use of this time off affected the amount of overtime dollars spent on an annual basis by the fire department. None of those who mentioned this issue had specific knowledge of how the Kelly Days were being used and/or how the Kelly Days affected the overtime budget, but they McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 28

29 all had a belief that Kelly Days were being used to benefit the fire department members and that it was costing the city a great deal of money. The perspective of many City of Shelbyville Fire Department members was that the City Council did not support the fire department and was only concerned with saving money. Many fire department members shared the perspective that the City Council wanted to change the provider of the EMS Service from the fire department to a private provider. From experience the consultants have learned when we begin a comprehensive study that many people have a perspective of how the fire department provides services and operates with the resources they are provided. From the fire department and its members the perspective is often the same as we were told in Shelbyville. Usually when perspectives on how the fire department operates and the resources they are provided are different between the community stakeholders and the fire department members the problem is most often a lack of understanding by both sides of the perspective. Similar to many instances when there are differences of perspectives, the issues can be contributed to a lack of communications and education about the subjects or issues. The consultants are hopeful that this final report will allow both the city officials and fire department members to gain a better understanding of how the fire department operates and uses resources. Likewise, the report should allow the fire department members to better understand the concerns of the city officials and their need to answer to the citizens and taxpayers of the community. Perhaps with a better understanding, representatives of both sides can begin to communicate more effectively with each other in regards to the fire department operations and services to better serve the community and do what is in the best interest of the citizens that are served. Five consultants were assigned to this study. Each handled topics that were appropriate to their specific skills and areas of expertise. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 29

30 Dr. Tim McGrath project manager is a retired Fire Chief with 33 years of fire and EMS experience. He has served as the Fire Chief of two very diverse communities. He has experience in leadership of fire departments comprised of fully career to combinations of career, paid-on-call, part-time paid, and contractual personnel. He has been a fire/ems consultant since 1997 and president of McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. since Chief Robert Stedman lead consultant is a Fire Chief with more than 30 years of fire and EMS experience. He has served as Fire Chief in both a large career and mid-size combination department. He holds a master s degree from the University of Wisconsin and a bachelor s degree in Fire Science Management from Southern Illinois University. He served as the Dean of the Service and Health Division for Waukesha County Technical College. He is currently a Fire Chief of a consolidated fire department similar in size to the City of Shelbyville Fire Department. Dr. Victoria McGrath brings expertise in administration and human resources. Her published doctoral dissertation on Government as a Learning Organization dealt with government efficiency. She is a federally trained mediator and past team member serving as city manager. She has extensive experience with organized labor and measuring efficiency in organizations. Battalion Chief Larry Pieniazek, Retired retired from the City of Elmhurst, Illinois Fire Department with 33 years of service. Chief Pieniazek dealt with the areas of fire apparatus and fire stations. Chief Mike Stried, Retired - has been with McGrath Consulting Group for more than six years. Chief Stried has spent over 37 years in the fire service starting as a volunteer firefighter/emt and joining a career department while he continued to serve as the chief of a volunteer fire/ems department. Any report of this nature is a snapshot in time and the consultants acknowledge that certain numbers of personnel, and/or apparatus, or other items might have changed prior to the final McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 30

31 distribution of this report; however, to the best of the consultants knowledge the material in this report was accurate at the time of the writing. Priority Ranking Description All recommendations will be distributed throughout the report when appropriate and will end with a Priority Rank using the table below: Table 1: Report Priority Hierarchy Report Priority Hierarchy Priority Definition Example 1 Urgent/Immediate Threat to member's life, legal and regulatory compliance violations; physiological needs; essential preventative action needed 2 Pressing < Priority 1 Significant impact on organization; action needed as soon as possible 3 Important < Priority 2 4 Future Consideration Organization will benefit by addressing soon; items that should be accomplished Items needs to be addressed; develop future plan of action; low consequences of delay-action 5 Information Only Organization should be aware; take under consideration At the end of the report the section Summary of Recommendations will summarize the periodization and will be provided on disk in a Microsoft Excel format to allow reassignment of priority, by the client. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 31

32 Governance and Management The City of Shelbyville operates under a Mayor/Council form of government. The Mayor's office is the executive branch of city government. The Mayor is the chief executive for the City of Shelbyville. The Mayor of Shelbyville is elected to a 4 year term, which expires at the end of The City Council is comprised of seven (7) council members that constitute the legislative and governing body of the City. The City Council is responsible for passing the City's budget, passing laws or ordinances and the spending of funds that the City collects in taxes and other forms of revenue. City Council members are elected to a 4-year term and the term of the entire City Council expires on December 31, Five members of the City Council are elected from the five wards of the City of Shelbyville plus two at-large members who represent all five wards. The Mayor by the authority of the City of Shelbyville Code of Ordinances Chapter appoints the following department heads who all serve at the pleasure of the Mayor: Chief of the Police Department Chief of the Fire Department Department of Law Planning Department Ambulance Department Engineering Department Sewage Treatment Plant Department Street and Sanitation Department The Fire Chief as well as other Department Heads listed in the ordinance serves at the pleasure of the Mayor. The consultants were informed that the Mayor also appoints the Fire Department Deputy Fire Chief and the EMS Chief. The members of the Board of Public Works and Safety are the Mayor and two voters of the city who are appointed by the Mayor and serve at the pleasure of the Mayor. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 32

33 The Board of Public Works and Safety is established by the City of Shelbyville Code of Ordinances Chapter and serves as the chief administrative body of the city and under the ordinance has control of the day-to-day operations of the following executive departments: Police Department Fire Department Planning Department Ambulance Department Engineering Department Sewage Treatment Plant Department Street and Sanitation Department Under this same Code of Ordinances Chapter (C) City Ambulance Service, the Board of Public Works and Safety has the following responsibilities: (1) "The Board of Public Works and Safety is authorized to provide for and maintain an ambulance service for the speedy removal of sick and needy persons. This service may include the ownership by the city of an emergency ambulance or mobile first aid unit, the purchase, sale, or exchange of these units, their maintenance and repair, and the employment and training of personnel for the operation of these units." (2) "The Board of Public Works and Safety is authorized to enter into any contract which it may deem advisable with the Board of Commissioners of the county, for the furnishing of financial assistance by the county to the city for the maintenance and operation of mobile first aid units within the county and outside the city. Such a contract is subject, however, to approval by the City Council of the city." Under this same Code of Ordinances Chapter Powers of Departments states: "Subject to the appropriation power of the City Council, the foregoing departments shall have the ability to hire such employees, and purchase or contract for such materials, as the Board of Public Works and Safety or other governing board or commission deems necessary to perform their public McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 33

34 functions. The Board of Public Works and Safety shall have the power and responsibility to consider, allow, approve, and/or disapprove of all claims for the issuance of warrants and payment of money, except where the state code specifically provides otherwise. From the language contained in the City of Shelbyville Code of Ordinances Chapter it indicates that the Fire Department and Ambulance Department are actually two separate city departments. It further indicates under this same section that the Board of Public Works and Safety, as the chief administrative body of the city, has control of the day-to-day operations of both the Fire Department and Ambulance Department. It is interesting to note that in this Code of Ordinances specifically under section Paragraph (C) titled "City Ambulance Service", subparagraph (1) indicates the Board of Public Works and Safety is authorized to provide for and maintain an ambulance service including the employment and training of personnel for the ambulance service. Under this same section Paragraph (C) titled "City Ambulance Service", subparagraph (2), it appears the Board of Public Works and Safety has the authority to enter into a contract with the Board of Commissioners of the county for ambulance services and the costs of such services provided within the county, but outside the limits of the City of Shelbyville. In essence, the Board of Public Works and Safety has the responsibility to determine the costs of providing ambulance services within the county, but outside the city and if necessary work out an agreement with the county for any cost reallocations. The final costs and any contract would need to be approved by the City Council. Under the Code of Ordinances section the Board of Public Works and Safety has a great deal of responsibility for approving or disapproving of all funds spent by all the city departments under their day-to-day control including both the Fire Department and the Ambulance Department. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 34

35 Fire Department Overview In June 1868 the first hand drawn fire engine was purchased for service in the City of Shelbyville and the Union Fire Company was organized sometime during the same year. Sometime during the 1890 s the name of the Fire Department was changed to the Shelbyville Fire Company. The Fire Department operated as a volunteer fire company until it became a fully paid department on February 1, The Shelbyville Fire Department currently provides fire protection services to the City of Shelbyville and to three Townships in Shelby County under contracts with the Townships. The Shelbyville Fire Department also provides EMS paramedic level services to the entire area and population of Shelby County, which accounts for an area of about 412 square miles. The area protected for fire protection is about 69 square miles including square miles in the City of Shelbyville and include the following communities: City of Shelbyville - Fire Services Township of Addison - Contract for Fire Protection Township of Marion - Contract for Fire Protection Township of Shelby - Contract for Fire Protection The area covered for EMS services is an area of about 412 square miles and includes not only the City of Shelbyville, but the entire area of Shelby County. The two primary ambulances assigned as the first responding units are known as Med #1, which is located at fire station #1 and Med #2 which is located at fire station #2. Med #1 responds to an area of 160 square miles and Med #2 response area is about 260 square miles. Both Med #1 and Med#2 are Advanced Life Support (ALS) Paramedic ambulances. Both Med Units are staffed by two personnel with at least one of the members being a paramedic. EMS Service History As the consultants began the task of understanding the operation of the City of Shelbyville Fire Department it became clear that the history of the fire and EMS service in the City of Shelbyville McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 35

36 was long, but that until January of 1990 the Fire and EMS Service were provided by two different organizations. It is also important to understand that either an organization within the City of Shelbyville or the County of Shelby has been instrumental in operating the EMS and/or ambulance service both within the City of Shelbyville and Shelby County since the mid-1950s. From the consultants view this is important because a number of stakeholders that were interviewed expressed concern about the EMS service in terms of staffing, operations and if the costs were being shared equally between the city and the county. In reviewing the background it is apparent that the City has always been in the leadership position of operating the EMS service. In the past, operating the ambulance service by private providers had been attempted with no success and the cost of operating the EMS/ambulance service has been shared between the city and county for a long time. The significant changes that have occurred since the 1950's in terms of EMS service is the implementation of Paramedic Service in the early 1980's, the costs of staffing and other resources for operating the ambulance service has increased dramatically and the number and types of EMS calls responded to on an annual basis has increased significantly over the years. As was common throughout the country in the early days ambulance service was provided by funeral homes. The funeral homes provided this service as a way to supplement their revenue, but eventually the need for the service became much more that the funeral homes were able to handle. In 1954, the Fraternal Order of the Police began raising funds to provide ambulance service to both the City of Shelbyville and the citizens of Shelby County. On October 1, 1954 the Shelbyville Police Emergency Unit began offering ambulance service throughout the city and county free of charge to everyone. By 1955 the Shelbyville Police Emergency Unit which operated on donations started to experience financial problems. In 1956, an agreement between the city and the county placed the operation of the ambulance service under the control of the city with the county paying half of the operating costs. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 36

37 In March 1966, the City Council adopted an ordinance authorizing the Shelbyville Board of Public Works and Safety to own and operate the emergency ambulance service according to the statues of the State of Indiana. The Shelby County Emergency Ambulance Committee was also organized. The committee consisted of the President of the Board of County Commissioners, two City Council members and two county council members. In October 1970, the local funeral directors informed the city and the county that they would be ending all ambulance service including backup ambulance service by the end of the year. This change resulted in a second ambulance being placed in service in 1971 and staffing for the ambulance was increased to two per shift to meet the new federal guidelines. A new private ambulance service was started in In 1970's, the State of Indiana implemented new training standards for EMTs including 81 hours of required training and the mandate that at least one EMT had to remain in the patient compartment during transport to a hospital. In the early 1980's the idea of training local personnel to become paramedics became a reality and in 1982 the first of three ambulance service members became paramedics. Finally on February 2, 1983 the paramedic advanced life support service began in Shelbyville and Shelby County. The ambulance service had shared the same living space, station duties and training for almost three decades. While many Fire Department members had no interest in responding to EMS calls on a regular basis, their apprehension was addressed by training on duty firefighters in EMS skills. All ambulance personnel became trained and certified as second-class firefighters. This cross-training resulted in the stage being set for the two departments to merge into one department. On January 2, 1990, Mayor Dan Theobald issued an administrative order placing the ambulance service under control of the Shelbyville Fire Department for purposes of administration. By January 1991, the process of qualifying all ambulance personnel for the Indiana Police Fire McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 37

38 Pension had been completed. By 1995, the dual response of an engine company and an ambulance responding to EMS calls became the standard response and in fact is still the standard response for the Shelbyville Fire Department today. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 38

39 Emergency Activities At the onset of the study the Fire Department leadership advised the consultants that they believed the 2012 and 2013 data was inaccurate and misrepresented the department s emergency activities by 10% to 15% lower than actual response. In 2014, the department changed data management systems from Firehouse Software to ESO Solutions. The Chief indicated that he felt confident that ESO 2014 data was a true representation of the department s emergency responses. In most studies, the consultants have emergency response activity data within two weeks of receipt of the data request. The data provided by a fire department is crucial for the consultants, as it is the basis for the majority of recommendations. With Shelbyville, nearly three months later, the consultants received multiple submissions of revised data and discovered that the issue of inaccurate data is considerably more complex. However in Shelbyville, one day shy of three months later, having received multiple submissions of revised data, the consultants have discovered the issue of inaccurate data is considerably more complex. It is important to note that the Fire Department administration, as well as the dispatch supervisor, has spent copious time and effort to provide accurate fire department activities. A problem in both recording management systems has been identified and although efforts have been extended to ensure accurate data will be provided in the future; the consultants are concerned with the multiple steps that must be taken to have the two data bases (fire and dispatch) numbers match. It is not an unfair question for any City official, council, even a citizen to ask how many calls the Fire Department responded to within a given period of time and expect that the number can be validated and fit the definition of good data as defined below by the International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC). What Constitutes Good Emergency Activities Data? The use of data is essential for any fire chief. Often, the discussion revolves around what constitutes good data. The IAFC defines good data as data that meets three components: McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 39

40 Good Data is Relevant you are collecting information on the things that matter, like response times and number of calls for service. Good Data is Accurate your processes for data collection must be consistent and trustworthy. Good Data is Reliable a measurement from one company is equivalent to the same measurement from another company. You don t have to adjust your data to accommodate known distortions. (Source: International Association of Fire Chiefs: Weathering the Economic Storm, December 2008) Unfortunately, the SFD does not meet these criteria. Until this study, the department leadership acknowledges they rarely queried emergency response data and as such; data was not utilized to its fullest capabilities as a management tool as described below: Why is Relevant, Accurate, and Reliable Data Essential to Leadership? The primary function of a fire department is to respond to emergencies. Although this activity only takes a small percentage of the department s total time, its state of readiness must always be at a maximum. The challenge for fire/ems leadership is to identify the need for resources that will provide the highest level of service, safety for those who receive and provide that service, and justify the fiscal resources needed. Fire chiefs and department supervisors should daily utilize categories of data for a variety of leadership/management functions, including but not limited to: Fiscal management Staffing Resource deployment Budgeting Purchasing Strategic planning Program development/implementation Program oversight/assessment McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 40

41 Assuring competency Assuring cost-effective/efficient services Communication with governing board(s) Leadership can quantify the above objectives through good data which serves as the powerful management tool for leadership. The SFD has a significant opportunity to begin to utilize emergency response data in the daily management and long-term planning in the department. Recommendation Data Usage The department leadership should query data fields outlined in this report on a monthly basis, for utilization in all of the above listed categories in the department s management. Priority 2 Which Data is More Accurate Dispatch or Fire Department? Every time the SFD responds to an emergency incident, the call to dispatch them came from either the City or County dispatch (both PSAP utilize the same CAD system). In the fire/ems consulting arena, PSAP (Public Safety Answering Point) data is considered more accurate than fire department data. With that said, not all Fire/EMS consulting firms utilize fire department data; rather, they will only utilize data from the dispatch center that dispatches the department to the emergencies. Our firm utilizes both sources the Fire Department and PSAP, which should ensure that the data received is accurate. It was discovered that accurate data recovery from the PSAPs was not achievable and those issues are being investigated at the writing of this report. What is the Real Data Issue? As concisely as possible the current process of aligning the Fire Department data to that from the PSAP requires numerous modifications of the data management system readouts. It has been determined that the source of data from the Fire Department and that from the PSAP do not match. The consultants lean towards the accuracy of the ESO Solutions 2014 data, but during the study process three modifications of the department s total emergency activities for 2014 were submitted all queried for ESO Solutions. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 41

42 Unlike the rule of thumb that PSAP data is more accurate than that of the Fire Department, the PSAP data exposed serious entry and query issues. Appendix B and appendix C attempt to briefly illustrate what efforts were made to bring the two sources to a similar numbers. The table below illustrates the result of approximately three months of revisions to data that was submitted to the consultants as most accurate. Table 2: 2014 Data Differences FD to PSAP PSAP FD Difference Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Total If one is to take the position of close enough it must be done with the review and acceptance of the calculations and assumptions described in Appendices B and C. The goal should be that when the SFD is sent on an emergency incident by its only source the City and County PSAP the data should match. To achieve this goal the City as a whole must place greater emphasis on data in order to determine need for resources for each department. Recommendation Citywide Quality/Assurance Program The City should provide the needed resources to ensure that all departments activities data reports are accurate and can be easily validated without alteration to explain the numbers. Priority 5 A positive is the SFD leadership acknowledged that greater emphasis will be placed in obtaining and utilizing accurate emergency response data. The best way to ensure this occurs is the McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 42

43 implementation of a data quality control/assurance program starting at the Battalion Chiefs level and ensured by the Deputy Chief. Recommendation Fire Department Quality/Assurance Program Fire department leadership should implement a data quality control/assurance program overseen by the Battalion Chiefs and submitted to the Deputy Chief monthly. Priority 2 Consultants Use of Shelbyville s Data Historically our firm has always substantiated report recommendation based on historical data and data trends. Unfortunately, since data was the very challenging issue for this report, the consultants cannot base their recommendations or conclusions on current or future services based on quantifiable data to any degree of validation available in most studies. The governing officials should seriously delay, when possible, fiscal request from the Fire Department for the next two years (2015 & 2016) at which time accurate data can be provided to justify the request. The data for 2015 and 2016 should match exactly from both PSAPs and the department s ESO data management system. The exception to this recommendation is the full-time placement of the third ambulance into service with existing resources, on a daily basis; and any critical life safety issues might arise. Although the consultants were provided with a department SOG indicating that the third ambulance would be staffed daily, the language in the contract which makes staffing and apparatus staffing a negotiable item does not support that SOG. Members interviewed indicated that the fire squad would be staffed prior the third ambulance when sufficient on-duty personnel allowed. The consultants anticipate some readers of this report will take exception to this recommendation noting that the Fire Department s 2014 data was the most accurate. The consultant s position is that future resources needs should not be based on one year of data; rather a quantifiable validated document showing needs on emergency service trends over an established period of time. Recommendations Data The Fire Department should seek additional training from ESO-Solutions on data entry and retrieval procedures. Priority 2 McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 43

44 Governing officials should delay fiscal requests for additional resources from the department for the next two years of ensured accurate data matching data from the PSAPs and SFD data management system are compatible and accurately agree. Exceptions: Placing the third ambulance in service with existing resources and critical issues that pertain to obvious life safety issues. Priority 5 The SFD has a Lieutenant who is very talented in refining data from both PSAP CAD systems and other sources. He has provided a brief description of how he obtained the most recent data submitted to the consultants (Appendix B). It is for this reason that the consultants will use the ESO total call data of 4,406 incidents in 2014; although the consultants are not willing to validate this number, it will be used as the most likely number of emergency responses in Ten-Year Emergency Activity Totals As previously noted, the data provided prior to 2014 was from Firehouse Software. The department leadership believed that the data was inaccurate and represented a loss of 10% to 15% of the actual department activities in 2012 and The consultants were troubled by this finding, inasmuch as Firehouse Software is the leading fire/ems, cloud based, data management systems with multiple components for managing services provided by fire departments in the United States and Internationally. Of the four fire/ems consultants participating in this study three used Firehouse Software most successfully for both fire, EMS, pre-plan, training, and other fields. This is not to imply that ESO Solutions is not a quality program; rather that the consultants are familiar with fire-based data systems. The department indicated that not all emergency calls were entered (in 2012 & 2013); the calls that were entered are only as accurate as the information entered; and SFD does not have a quality control/assurance program in place. In addition, the consultants were told that not all calls were entered into the computer before the individual left at the end of their duty shift and were entered upon the next working day of that individual. This is an unheard of practice in the fire/ems service and could place the City and department in a very liable situation as to McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 44

45 accuracy of the report. If these practices were allowed, the problem with the 2012 and 2013 data is not a software problem it was a management/leadership issue. The department provided total emergency call response for the last ten years, which illustrated an increase of 2.30% in calls since Figure 1: Ten Year Response Totals 4,500 4,000 3,500 3,000 2,500 2,000 1,500 1, ,406 3,682 3,733 3,838 3,732 3,832 3,569 3,600 3,698 3, Table 3: Percent of Change in Call Totals Year Average % Change -3.06% 4.59% 2.81% -6.20% 3.67% 2.68% -3.50% -2.57% 22.29% 2.30% Yellow highlighted percentage is not a true illustration of actual increase in emergency activities from From the previous information provided, it is accurate to conclude that there was not a 22.29% increase in actual emergency incidents in 2014 from Not only did the department acknowledge that the 2012 and 2013 total call data provided was low, but if emergency responses had increased by 22.29% the interviews with staff personnel would have highlighted how much work had increased since the previous year. The consultants are unable to provide even an estimate as to the actual percentage increase in SFD emergency activities in McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 45

46 Recommendation Ten Year Response Data The department leadership must ensure that all future data from the City s and County s CAD systems and that from their own data management system provide identical numbers. This is best accomplished through monthly quality/assurance meetings with the PSAP directors and the department leadership. Priority 2 Breakdown of EMS and Fire Call Totals Today most fire departments that provide both fire and EMS find EMS calls account for approximately 75% of their emergency responses. The table below illustrates the data provided by SFD for the three-year study period divided into fire and EMS categories: Table 4: Breakdown of EMS to Fire for Three-Year Study Period Year EMS % EMS Fire % Fire Total , % % 3, , % % 3, , % 1, % 4,406 Total 9, % 2, % 11,707 Concern: if the total calls for 2014 equaled 4,406, this would result in fire calls increasing by 122.8% (2013 = 483 in 2014 = 1,076) from the previous year. An escalation of this percentage of fire incidents in 2014 should raise significant concerns inasmuch as EMS data illustrates a consistent pattern. If fire incidents increased that significantly, the consultants believe that increase would have been shared as a serious concern not only by those interviewed within the Fire Department, but by elected officials and administration as well. Utilizing the best data provided, EMS percentages actually dropped by 11% in 2014; however, this is contradicted by the actual number of incidents in the table above. Although it is listed that 82.7% of all emergency calls are EMS, the consultants believe the actual number of EMS responses is higher. The figure below illustrates the breakdown between fire and EMS: McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 46

47 Figure 2: Three-Year Average of Percentage of EMS to Fire % Fire, 17.3% % EMS, 82.7% It should be remembered that SFD provides EMS to the entire 412 square miles of Shelby County and fire service to three Townships (in part or whole) protecting 69 square miles. (Shelbyville s EMS system will be discussed in a separate section of this report). Fire Service Response Model Historically fire service efforts were devoted to fire suppression and those who followed in the profession maintained the importance of fire suppression. However, the name fire department is somewhat a misnomer. Today s fire service is considered by most civilians as an all-risk service, meaning the department is staffed, trained, equipped, and will respond to provide public emergency mitigation to their emergency. Shelbyville Fire Department services include: Emergency Medical Services o Advance Life Support (ALS) o Basic Life Support (BLS) Fire Suppression Fire Prevention Vehicle Extrication Public Safety Education Swift Water Rescue Ice Rescue McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 47

48 Today s service is really an EMS department that happens to also provide fire/rescue services. SFD three-year study data indicated that 82.7% of all emergency incidents were EMS in nature. As the service model changes, so must the utilization of resources and resource deployment. This is particularly appropriate for the SFD which, at minimum, encounters 82.7% of all emergencies are EMS in nature and the EMS district is just slightly six times larger than the fire protection area. The SFD needs to staff a third ambulance by realigning its on-duty staffing to maximum its availability. Recommendation Third Ambulance The on-duty staffing should be re-allocated to allow for a third ambulance to be placed in service on a daily basis. This will require existing resource deployment changes (perhaps jump company individuals respond with the apparatus which best meets the caller s needs). The additional ambulance billing income (not loss when a private ambulance is called) will help to offset the operational expenses. Priority 3. Incident by Nature Both fire and EMS reports are submitted to the Indiana Department of Homeland Security (IDHS) by state statute. Fire reports go to the State Fire Marshal s office who submits the data to the National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS) program under authority of the United States Fire Administration (USFA). NFIRS categorizes incident types into nine categories with each category having a series number with multiple sub-categories under each main series number. The USFA collects and analyzes NFIRS data from participating states in order to provide a legal record of fact, assist fire department administration in evaluating its fire and EMS effectiveness, and to collect data for use at the state and national levels. Emergency Medical Services data is submitted to the IDHS EMS division in addition all trauma data is submitted to the Indiana State Department of Health (ISDH). Currently there is no national data recording program such as NFIRS. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 48

49 Shelbyville NFIRS Data Table 5: Shelbyville Fire Department 3-Year NFIRS Data NFIRS # Category % of Total 100 Fires % 200 Overpressure/Explosion % 300 EMS/Rescue 3,227 3,120 3,456* 83.7%* 400 Hazardous Condition % 500 Service Calls % 600 Good Intent Calls % 700 False Alarm/False Calls % 800 Severe Weather % 900 Special Incidents % Total Calls 3,698 3,603 4, % * Data submitted contradicts previous data source Figure 3: Shelbyville 3-Year Average Good Intent Calls, False Alarm/False 7.5% Calls, 2.9% Service Calls, 2.0% Hazardous Condition, 1.2% Severe Weather, 0.0% Special Incidents, 0.1% Fires, 2.4% Overpressure/Explosi on, 0.2% EMS/Rescue, 83.7% Comparing Shelbyville to National NFIRS Statistics 2014 The consultants had in the past utilized NFIRS statistics from the U.S. Fire Administration National Fire Incident Reporting System Topical Fire Report Series, which allowed comparison of emergency response data on a national, regional, state, and local basis. However, some categories (those in italics) of data were last gathered in 2004 and updated statistics are not available for those categories. Other sources, such as NFPA, do not list all of the NFIRS categories; however, the few they do indicate significant changes in numbers which lessened the McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 49

50 No Data Provided by value of the old NFIRS report. Therefore, the best comparison is illustrated in the table below which compares the most recent NFPA estimates (2013), the SFD data. Table 6: NFIRS National & Shelbyville Comparison NFIRS National Shelbyville Indiana 100 Fire 4.32% 2.4% 200 Overpressure//Rupture/Explosion 0.30% 0.2% 300 Rescue/EMS 68.14% 83.7% 400 Hazardous Condition 1.13% 1.2% 500 Service Call 7.00% 2.0% 600 Good Intent 9.70% 7.5% 700 False Alarm/False Call 7.03% 2.9% 800 Severe Weather 0.30% 0.0% 900 Special Incident 1.60% 0.1% * Italicized percentages in National category are 2004 percentages which have not been updated Emergency Service Trends Progressive fire department leadership utilizes emergency response data for multiple purposes including budgeting, strategic planning, management, and resource deployment. The data in the following areas is beneficial to the day-to-day management of a department. The following areas will be examined as they pertain to the SFD: Simultaneous incidents Calls by time of day Calls by day of the week Calls by month Calls distribution by district Distribution by shift Mutual aid/automatic aid Simultaneous/Overlapping Incidents Simultaneous/overlapping incidents is a term utilized when referring to times when the department is handling an emergency situation and another unrelated emergency incident occurs requiring immediate fire department response. Depending on the record management system McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 50

51 utilized by a department, these incidents might be called simultaneous, overlapping, or back-toback calls. The significance of the amount and frequency of simultaneous incidents can result in increased response times or greater usage of mutual aid. There is no consensus in the industry as to an exact number when simultaneous/overlapping incidents require additional resources. Fire departments do not have the ability to stack calls as do police agencies who routinely prioritize calls and dispatch accordingly. With few exceptions, when requests the fire department it is for an emergency at least in the opinion of the caller. If every piece of fire or EMS apparatus were available at its assigned location every time a call for service was received, the department s reliability would be 100%. If, however, a call is received for a particular station/unit, but that station/unit is already committed to another incident, be it fire or EMS, and the next closest unit must respond from a different station or source; the substitute company may exceed the maximum prescribed response time. As the number of emergency calls per day increases, the probability increases that the primary unit needed for response is already committed and a backup or substitute unit will need to be dispatched. Although there are no national standards that indicate when simultaneous/overlapping calls require additional on-duty personnel the consultants experience indicates that when simultaneous/overlapping calls reach 15% to 20% serious consideration to additional on-duty personnel is recommended. Shelbyville Simultaneous/Overlapping Data As previous noted revised data was often submitted and simultaneous/overlapping calls utilized a different data source to present new simultaneous call numbers after the consultants met with the Chief and discussed their findings, figures, and charts. The Lieutenant found that not only could they provide new numbers, but they could also plot where the calls were occurring, which was previously indicated they could not (see call distribution by district). McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 51

52 The program used was ThinkMap and is available through the GIS mapping system for the county (see Appendix B for process). Therefore, the consultants have two sets of data for simultaneous calls for 2014 as illustrated below. Table 7: Simultaneous/Overlapping Incidents Simultaneous/Overlapping Incidents Year Source Simultaneous % of Total Average % % 2014 ESO % ThinkMap 1, % Average Could Be 15.9% or 21.5% The simultaneous calls in 2014 might have decreased by 8.7% or increased by 33.4% from the previous year. Conventional wisdom would believe that it is unlikely simultaneous calls decreased; conversely it is equally unlikely they increased by one-third. Figure 4: Three-Year Simultaneous Averages Therefore unable to quantifiably illustrate the data for simultaneous calls, the consultants do believe the frequency of simultaneous calls warrants sufficient resources on duty in order to address the multiple unrelated emergency incidents. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 52

53 Incidents by Time of Day One of the most fundamental ways to describe the fire/ems problem is to show how fire/ems incidents are distributed by month, day of week, and hour of the day. The reason is when a significant pattern is discovered that indicates the probability that emergency incidents will occur at a certain time/day/month, it allows the department to utilize peak staffing. This is especially beneficial for organizations that can clearly identify when emergency incidents are most likely to occur. Peak staffing allows the department leadership to utilize additional resources (paid-on-call or paid-on-premise) for the time that statistically the call will occur, rather than adding additional 24-hour shift personnel when statistically they will only be needed for a short period. In most departments, incidents charted by time of day follow a pattern similar to a bell curve. The least busy time of day is from midnight to early morning, peaking in the mid-afternoon, and decreasing in the very late evening hours. Although the least busy time of day is from midnight to early morning, it is also when the highest number of civilian fire deaths occur, due to the occupants sleeping. Those most at risk are the very young and old, who often are less able to escape and protect themselves. The leading cause of fires is people who are careless; therefore, structure fires are more likely to start when people are home awake and active indoors. Cooking is the leading cause of structure fires and therefore between the hours of 6:00 PM and 7:00 PM is nationally the peak period for structure fires (source: American Red Cross). Shelbyville Incidents Time of Day The table below illustrates the time of day of emergency incidents both fire and EMS along with the three-year study average. Table 8: Incidents by Time of Day Time of Day Mid 1 AM 2 AM 3 AM 4 AM 5 AM 6 AM 7 AM 8 AM 9 AM 10 AM 11 AM Noon 1 pm 2 pm 3 pm 4 pm 5 pm 6 pm 7 pm 8 PM 9 PM 10 PM 11 PM Total , , ,406 Average McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 53

54 The figure below illustrates that there are very little variations among the three-year line plots. This consistency might be somewhat unexpected to some; inasmuch as there has been an increase in the total number of calls in 2014 by 22.3% from the previous year. What is illustrated in the figure is the number of calls hourly on an annual basis, although incident numbers change the pattern of when calls are occurring by time of day is consistent. Figure 5: Incidents by Time of Day Mid 1 AM 2 AM 3 AM 4 AM 5 AM 6 AM 7 AM 8 AM 9 AM 10 AM 11 Noo AM n pm 2 PM 3 PM 4 PM 5 PM 6 PM 7 PM 8 PM 9 PM 10 PM 11 PM Incidents by Day of the Week Incidents reviewed by day of the week are another metric utilized by leadership to manage the resources of the organization. Coupled with time of day and perhaps incidents by month, this information could be of value if a pattern emerges suggesting peak staffing would be advantageous. The figure below illustrates the SFD three-year average for calls by day of the week. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 54

55 Figure 6: Incidents by Day of the Week Sat, 13.72% Sun, 12.96% Fri, 15.23% Mon, 14.77% Thu, 14.53% Tue, 14.58% Wed, 14.21% Table 9: Incident by Day of the Week Year Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Total , , ,406 Average ,707 % of Total 12.96% 14.77% 14.58% 14.21% 14.53% 15.23% 13.72% 100% The three-year study period average for incidents by day of the week would indicate that Fridays are the busiest occurring at approximately 3:00 PM. Incidents by Month The Shelbyville area provides copious opportunities for outdoor activities year-round ranging from hiking, fishing, biking, water and ice activates, and hunting; therefore, as with most midwest areas, the spring, summer, and fall usually have more tourists and activities resulting in a greater demand for services on the Fire Department. However, the data provided doesn t show the typical pattern; rather January, August, and December indicated the greatest percentage average for the three-year study period as illustrated below: McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 55

56 Table 10: Incidents by Month Year Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Total , , ,406 Average ,902 Figure 7: Incidents by Month 3 Year Average Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec 3 Year Average Call Distribution by District SFD designated where calls were occurring in different formats over the three-year study period due to the change in data management systems. The data provided for 2012 and 2013 was in a format that identified districts by which SFD unit responded, what other fire departments SFD interacted with (unknown if aid was given or received), incidents that were not identified with an area or district. The consultants believed that the Fire Department leadership could identify where calls were occurring but anyone outside the organization would need assistance in identifying this information. What is consistent is there is an EMS response district of 412 square miles and a fire response district of 69 square miles (including three Townships in part or whole) as illustrated in the two figures below: McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 56

57 Figure 8: Fire Response District Map Figure 9: Ambulance Response District Map McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 57

58 The revised 2014 data did identify areas by names of communities as illustrated in the table below: Table 11 Incidents by District Location 2014 Acton 7 Boggstown 21 Edinburgh 62 Fairland 301 Flat Rock 48 Fountaintown 72 Franklin 7 Greensburg 1 Gwynneville 11 Indianapolis 4 Manilla 14 Morristown 168 New Palestine 13 Saint Paul 33 Shelbyville 3,515 St. Paul 3 Waldron 126 Total 4,406 Identifying Call Distribution Using Township Sections SFD provides fire/ems protection services to the entire or portions of three Townships equaling 69 square miles and the county 412 square miles: Fire = All of Addison township Fire = All of Marion township Fire = Portion of Shelby township EMS = All of Shelby County Townships in Indiana are surveyed using the Public Land Survey (PLS) aka: rectangular survey system (although not a rectangle) into 6 miles by 6 miles or 36 square miles or 36 1 mile by 1 mile (1 square mile) portions. Therefore, lost townships in the United States appear as in the figure below: McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 58

59 Figure 10: Section Numbering of Townships The mapping technology utilized by the SFD Lieutenant is called ThinkMap which is through the GIS County mapping system. A similar program utilized by a department in Texas is a program called Key Map. This program provided grids that were incorporated into the Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP) aka: dispatch. The technology will further divide each square mile into smaller grids which will overlap the call data showing exactly where emergency incidents are occurring. The readouts of these systems cannot only identify the exact location of incidents by also provide date, time, and other requested information. According to the SFD Lieutenant, the Fire Department s calls could be placed on ThinkMap which would plot the location of each call. Another program would be needed to list how many calls occurred at that address within a given time period. Therefore, the SFD could illustrate where calls are occurring and utilize this information for future resource needs. Recommendation Distribution by District The Fire Department should investigate the ThinkMap mapping technology which could better illustrate the exact locations of emergency incidents allowing department leadership to quantify the use of existing resources and future needs of additional resources. Priority 5 McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 59

60 Call Distribution by Station Data submitted that might assist in identifying where calls are occurring was provided in incidents by station. The ThinkMap GIS County mapping system was not utilized in placing call locations for resource planning and distribution. ThinkMap was utilized by the SFD Lieutenant in order to identify the missing calls not shown in the City and County CAD systems. The table below illustrates the most recent data revision showing two figures for Station #3 for 2014: Table 12: Three-Year Total Distribution by Station Year Source Station #1 Station #2 Station #3 Sub Total County FD No Indication Total 2012 ESO 1, , ESO 1, , ESO ,226 4,406 1,636 1,324 ThinkMap 635 1, * 4,406 Total 4,603 2, ,446 County FD = Ambulance calls outside of fire district * The number of No Indication was reduced to equal the increase calls in Station #3 The two figures below illustrate the percentage of calls handled by each station as the primary unit to respond: Figure 11: ESO & ThinkMap Calls by Stations ESO - 3 Year Average Station Calls % of Total Station #1 4, % Station #2 2, % Station # % County FD % No Indication 2, % Total 11, % ThinkMap - 3 Year Average Station Calls % of Total Station #1 4, % Station #2 2, % Station #3 1, % County FD % No Indication 2, % Total 11, % McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 60

61 The consultants believe that the data provided by the SFD Lieutenant utilizing ThinkMap is the more accurate three-year incident distribution by station; however, again the consultants were unable to verify. Station Data Concerns The entry of data by department personnel needs to be addressed inasmuch as a range of 17.3% to 20.9% of all incidents are classified as No Indication meaning the department cannot determine which station was the primary response station. Obviously, this information is known at the time of the incident and not entered into the data management system. Also, depending on the data used, Station #3 responds less than once a day (0.87/day) to one and a quarter times a day (1.25/day). The consultants will address concerns with Station #3 in the Station section of this report but question if the design and apparatus space are best serving the City and the community. Call Distribution by Shift Leadership, utilizing the metric of incidents by shift, initially might appear to be of little value other than bragging rights for the busiest shift. However, there is value if the leadership utilizes the data for quality/assurance control. If a particular shift s yearly incident data conflicts with other data, the leadership can review total incident responses for each shift and identify if the inconsistency is department-wide or problematic to a single shift. In either case, examining incidents by shift primarily is a quality control measurement and one appropriate for SFD. Table 13: Incidents by Shift 3 Year Average Year A Shift B Shift C Shift Private Other Not Identified Total ,261 1,358 1, ,876* ,262 1,149 1, , ,452 1,454 1, ,406 Average 1,325 1,320 1,287 * 2012 data exceeds total calls by 187 incidents McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 61

62 Figure 12: Incidents by Shift 3-Year Average C Shift 33% A Shift 34% B Shift 33% Mutual Aid/Automatic Aid The philosophical concept of mutual aid is to offer assistance to a fire department upon request of the host district. The sole purpose is to give or receive assistance when all available resources (equipment or personnel) are depleted and then on a limited basis. Automatic aid differs from mutual aid in that it is a pre-determined agreement with another department to respond automatically when the host department receives an alarm at a given location or area. SFD utilizes mutual aid but does not use automatic aid. In some studies, the consultants have found that governing officials believe that requesting assistance from other communities on a routine basis will preclude them from having to add additional personnel, pay overtime, or provide more apparatus. This thinking is greatly flawed inasmuch as the foundation of mutual and automatic aid is reciprocity. The SFD was unable to provide mutual aid data for 2012 and 2013; however, the consultants were told mutual aid is used minimally. The table below would validate that information. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 62

63 Figure 13: Mutual Aid Given & Received Mutual Aid Given Mutual Aid Received St. Paul VFD 1 Farland VFD 1 Waldron VFD 4 Fountaintown VFD 1 Manilla VFD 1 Marletta VFD 2 Morristown VFD 1 Not Indidacted 1 Total 6 Total 6 Partnership Opportunity Shelbyville Fire Department is the only all career fire department in Shelby County and the largest. Their EMS district of 412 square miles allows them to interface with multiple other agencies which presents some significant opportunities for partnerships, but will require a cultural change. All organizations develop a culture, and that culture easily becomes stronger than any single individual within an organization. Organizational cultures are created, maintained, or transformed by people. Culture finds its roots in shared basic assumptions: invented, discovered, perceived, or tangible by a given group as it learns to adapt within its environment. In reality, culture is a specific collection of values and norms that are shared by people within the organization. Culture is hard to define, but those within the organization understand it and recognize quickly when someone or something attempts to change it. Culture portrays itself in appearance, attitude, behavior, and performance. In short, culture is the personality of the organization. The data supported a theme heard throughout the study which suggests that both SFD members and the surrounding volunteer fire department members perceive SFD as self-sufficient. There is a difference in being part of a state-wide mutual aid system and utilizing training with, responding to calls, and developing relationships with neighboring volunteer/combination fire departments. No fire department is large enough that they are self-sufficient; and waiting until an emergency arises to work together at the emergency is less than ideal. The consulting team observed that McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 63

64 the SFD believes they are self-sufficient and are not in need of the resources of their surrounding departments. The exception is if they were to have the big one they would request assistance. Safe working relationships need to be built prior to the big one. Discussion with members of other surrounding departments supported the consultants supposition in statements such as: If another department was requested to assist SFD, it would most likely be to stand-by in their station awaiting another call versus actually responding to the emergency scene. The consultants are suggesting that SFD could become the model of excellence and provide training, services, advice, and work at emergency scenes with surrounding volunteer/combination fire departments. This will take not only a cultural change by many members of the SFD, but also a feeling that the members of the volunteer/combination fire departments are respected and valued as a potential resource. Recommendation Partnership Opportunities The SFD could benefit from creating a better working relationship with the surrounding volunteer fire departments. Priority 4 Mutual Aid Box Alarm (MABAS) The Mutual Aid Box Alarm System (MABAS) currently includes five Midwest states: Illinois, Wisconsin, Indiana, Missouri, and Iowa have adopted the program; Minnesota and Ohio are considering adoption. To clarify, Indiana is part of MABAS but also has a parallel program known as Indiana Mutual Aid Response Program (IMARP) through the Indiana Fire Chiefs Association (IFCA). The IFCA Mutual Aid Section works to coordinate the various mutual aid initiatives within the State of Indiana, including the Mid America Mutual Aid Consortium (MAMA-C), Mutual Aid Box Alarm System (MABAS), and the Indiana Mutual Aid Response Plan (IMARP). In addition, the Section coordinates the efforts in regards to Technical Rescue, Hazardous Materials and Mass Casualty response in Indiana. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 64

65 Summary of Emergency Activities The most positive conclusion drawn from the challenges with SFD data is the leadership is aware of the conflicts, indicates the need to improve data quality, indicates understanding of the importance of accurate data in management and leadership, and has within the department an individual who seems very adept at coordinating the data transition between the multiple parties. The most problematic conclusion drawn from the challenges with SFD data is the consultants cannot make recommendations based on a quantifiable finding to the degree desired. It is with regret that the consultants have recommended that the governing officials do not make any significant fiscal investments in additional resources until the department can provide accurate data that aligns with the PSAP s CAD data. The exception is placing a third ambulance in service and addressing issues of critical life safety. Recommendation Data Summary All parties would benefit from focusing on the opportunities for improvements and work cooperatively with other agencies to ensure a system of checks and balances is established; coupled with implementation of a data quality/assurance program. As long as the parties argue whose data is correct this opportunity will be missed. Priority 5 McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 65

66 Response Times / Public Safety Answering Point This section will address response times which are impacted by three significant components: Dispatch Pubic Safety Answering Point (PSAP) both City and County Shelbyville Fire Department Uncontrollable elements such as weather, traffic, road constructions, rail traffic, etc. It is for this reason the discussion of SFD response times and the two PSAPs should be addressed in the same section. Providing emergency services is all about response times. How long it takes the fire department to get on location to begin to mitigate the fire or provide emergency medical service is the primal issue. An acceptable response time is subjective depending on if you are the one in need or not. When a citizen makes a call to for an ambulance or fire, every second seems like minutes and their anxiety will disproportionately increase as the severity of the incident worsens. All fire professionals understand the importance of response time and many have lived the results of not being there just a few seconds sooner. Yet many fire departments do not routinely use response time data as a management tool to address opportunities to improve services. Unfortunately, this appears to be the case for the SFD. The data provided is inconclusive, contradictory, or no data available. The consultants share the frustration of the department leadership, after considerable effort and multiple response time data submissions; however, without accurate primal data, such as response times, it is difficult to justify existing or recommend future resource needs. PSAP City and County Although the City and County are two separate PSAPs, they share the same facility (sitting backto-back), utilize the same CAD systems, all calls both landline and cellular come directly to them, utilize the same back-up PSAP in an emergency (Hancock County), share extremely similar SOGs and policies, require the same certifications, share the same frequencies McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 66

67 (fire/ems), cross the room to assist the other PSAP when overloaded, utilize the same work schedule, and both PSAP supervisors are required to work shifts as a dispatcher. Yet they remain two separate PSAPs with copious redundancies; the only obvious difference is salaries. With the consultants background it would be most difficult to argue against the benefits of consolidation of PSAPs; however, that is outside the scope of this study. Both PSAPs cover area, schedule, shifts and shift staffing are illustrated in the table below: Table 14: City & County PSAP Public Safety Answering Point City Number of Maximum Minimum Covers Minimum Dispatchers Shift Shift City Only Midnights = 90% County Everything Outside City within County Midnights = 90% Shift Days Afternoons Midnights Swing (County) Time 7:00 AM - 3:00 PM 3:00 PM to 11 PM 11:00 PM to 7:00 AM As assigned Response Time Requires Teamwork To improve response times, validate response times, or use response time data in quality/assurance programs it requires a unified joint process between the PSAP (dispatch) and the Fire Department. A question asked numerous times of the consultants was: Why does a fire truck have to always go with the ambulance? The answer is to the above question is: it doesn t is an over-simplified answer to a more complex issue. The issue involves traditional beliefs, lack of the use of technology, simplification of addressing the unknown, and most obvious is the separation of fire and PSAP resulting in not working as a unified team. To change the SFD two unit response to all EMS calls policy will require both dispatch centers and the Fire Department to work together in developing an EMS response protocol and change from the status-quo dispatching policy. The results of a successful change and working partnerships can be a significant cost savings and additional safety for the emergency responders. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 67

68 The Shelbyville Fire Department, like most fire departments, staff their ALS ambulances with two personnel; therefore, on any given day four personnel (two in-service ambulances) of the 15 to 19 on-duty personnel are the primary resource handling 82.7% of all emergency responses by the SFD. Yet the vast majority of fire departments today perceive themselves as a fire agency that happens to provide EMS, and their entire service philosophy is based on this traditional view. In reality today s response deployment philosophy should be: 1. Today s fire service is predominately an EMS agency that secondarily provides fire protection services along with multiple other services. The fire service is the largest provider of EMS services (46% of all providers). The leading service is EMS and actual fires continue to decrease. This is a statement easily understood by most outside the fire service; however, if understood by the fire service, it is not the resource deployment philosophy implemented in most fire departments. To some degree this EMS philosophy change is occurring in Shelbyville but not to the full extent. 2. In order for the fire department to send the proper resources the dispatch (PSAP) must utilize Emergency Priority Dispatching (EPD) information: Emergency Medical Priority Dispatching is a unified system used to dispatch appropriate resources to medical emergencies, most often including systematized caller pre-arrival instructions known as Emergency Medical Dispatching (EMD) These are two different dispatching functions, often mistaken as one. The consultants were told by Fire Department leadership that currently, the dispatch centers do not provide any information as to the nature of the medical request to the Fire Department. Therefore, the Fire Department believes they are best serving the needs of the caller by sending sufficient resources to handle the most probable serious situation. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 68

69 However, the PSAP indicates they do provide the Fire Department with: Address Age of patient Gender of the patient Nature of the call The consultants witnessed an EMS call being transmitted to the Fire Department and confirmed this information was transmitted. Shelbyville EMS Response There are several truths, fallacies, and undocumented excuses why this current dispatching/response scenario is utilized in Shelbyville: Serious medical emergencies (e.g., heart attack, major trauma, etc.) require more than two paramedics to aggressively provide life saving measures. Conversely, not all medical calls are life-threatening situations. Accurate data recording could provide leadership with a well-defined classification of what calls will most likely require additional resources (the premise of EPD). Even if the Fire Department knew the nature, it is not always accurate and a caller faced with an emergency situation could be poor judge of what resources are needed: Example if you break your wrist it really isn t an emergency, however, if I break mine it is! Therefore, the Fire Department is being prudent in their reaction to worst-case scenario. A fire chief is not paid to take risks; they are paid to know what risks to take. EPD has found to be a very reliable cost-effective method in matching emergency resources with the nature of the emergency. What ifs? o Upon arrival, are additional resources are truly needed? Simply, most departments just radio for additional resources while the first arriving personnel intervene worse case conducting Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR). McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 69

70 o Many emergency medical personnel are injured from lifting so what if the patient is obese or has to be carried up or down a flight of stairs? Again radio transmissions travel at 186,000 miles per second (speed of light) and additional resources can be called. o The what ifs can be endless but EPD is utilized throughout the country very successfully. What is the up side? o The second leading cause of death of firefighter/emergency medical technicians is vehicle accidents either responding to or returning from. Also every time a fire department vehicle responds with lights and sirens it increases the anxiety and chance of injuries to civilians. Therefore, less vehicles responding under emergency conditions lessens the chance of accidents. o Running a fire truck after an ambulance, or worse yet an aerial apparatus (quint) is expensive in wear, maintenance, and replacement parts (e.g., tires). It significantly decreases the life expectancy of these units which are much more expensive than alternative chase vehicles (e.g., SUV). o Citizen s perception often is the mismanagement taxpayers money which is being spent on sending unneeded or unwanted resources. Often citizens will compare outcomes to what should have been sent (e.g. she only tripped and fell on the sidewalk but an ambulance, fire truck, and police car all showed up all she needed was help getting up. The emergency service provider doesn t have this luxury of working calls in reverse. A person s perception is their reality for most people. What is the down side? o On rare occasions either the caller or dispatcher underestimate the resource needs or additional resource arrival is delayed remembering that the first responding unit is never delayed and can immediately begin mitigating the medical McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 70

71 emergency. Throughout the county, First Responder EMS programs are utilized until advanced EMS care can arrive. o Emergency Priority Dispatching requires adequate resources and unless the change begins in the PSAP the status-quo will remain and multiple apparatus will be dispatched to incidents which could be handled by a single unit. It will costs a little more now to save a lot in the future; not even addressing the additional safety provided the responders and general public. Response Time Components When examining response times, it is essential that all parties are talking about the same response time components. When a fire department states they must be able to reach the emergency in four minutes; they are only referring to travel time (under NFPA 1710) and are excluding notification and turnout time. The actual measurement of response time must be a total system understanding of all components of response time, including: Detection Time: The time it takes to detect the emergency incident and dial Notification Time: The time from when the call is received by dispatch (PSAP) to the time the department is notified. Turnout Time (Out the Door Time): The time it takes personnel to prepare and leave quarters after notification. Travel Time: The time the first fire apparatus leaves the station to the time it arrives on the scene. (The term travel time ends when the unit arrives on location of the emergency) Mitigation Time: The time the first apparatus arrives at the scene to the time when actual extinguishing/treatment (mitigation) efforts begin. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 71

72 Response Time Components Control By: The following department/agency controls the response time components elements: Dispatch (PSAP) Control: Alarm Transfer Time (NFPA edition: shall not exceed 30 seconds 95% of all alarms) calls that do not come directly to the dispatch center that is responsible for notification to the fire department must be transferred. o Neither the City or County could provide data on this component because when the call is answered it is not recorded by CAD; rather, CAD will begin when the call is created in its system. Alarm Answering Time (NENA all emergency calls answering shall not exceed 10 seconds 90% of all alarms) from the time the call/alarm is received and entered into the CAD system. o CAD system is unable to capture this time for the same reason as described above. Alarm Processing Time (NFPA edition: shall not exceed 60 seconds 95% of all alarms) from entry into the CAD system to the actual time the voice or electronic means is utilized to notify the fire department. o Three-year average PSAP Create to Dispatch equal: EMS = 1 minute 35 seconds Fire = 1 minute 59 seconds Source: Disk provided by the City Dispatch (March site visit) Often these time are combined into the heading Notification Time. The following agencies that have standards for communication centers the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), National Emergency Number Association (NENA), National Fire Protection Agency (NFPA), and the Associated Public-Safety Communications Officials (APCO). McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 72

73 Technology Considerations Although the consultants have seen a few other PSAPs whose CAD systems require the dispatcher to enter simple data (e.g., address and phone number) manually into the CAD system this adds precious seconds to the notification of the emergency agency. This is why it is not uncommon for dispatchers to err in the best interest of the caller and dispatch first and finish entering CAD data later; resulting in extended average creation times. Most CAD systems receive what is called Automatic Number Identification (ANI) and Automatic Location Identification (ALI) which is displayed on the dispatcher s console and automatically simultaneously entered into the CAD system. Recommendation PSAP Creation Time The City should investigate if there are technology improvements that could enhance emergency caller s information into the CAD system that would shorten the creation time. The International Academies of Emergency Dispatch would be an excellent source for additional information. Web Site Priority 3 Fire Department Control: Turnout Time / Out the Door Time (NFPA edition: shall not exceed 60 seconds for EMS and 80 seconds for fire calls) the time from when the fire department is notified by dispatch until the first mitigation unit leaves the station or begins their response. o The Fire Department indicated they do not record their turnout times; however, the consultants were able to conduct a hand count on approximately 20% of all calls in 2014 provided in PDF format by the PSAP. SFD Turnout/Out the Door Times = 1 minute 5 seconds (only EMS data was provided) Mitigation Time / Intervention Time (NFPA 1710 requires immediately upon arrival) from arrival of the fire department until mitigation efforts begin. o Data not available McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 73

74 On Scene Time / Total Time Out Time from the arrival of the first emergency unit until the departure of the last emergency unit from the scene of the incident. o 2014 data average was 34 minutes 31 seconds No or Limited Agency Control: Travel Time / Drive Time (NFPA edition: shall not exceed 240 seconds initial assigned unit and 480 seconds for the first alarm assignment ) the time from when the unit leaves the station until it arrives at the emergency scene. There are many uncontrollable factors: distance to the scene, traffic, weather conditions, availability of closest emergency unit, etc. o Dispatch to Arrival on the scene averaged (2014) 6 minutes 33 seconds Recommendation Turnout Time (Out the Door) SFD has complete control of how long it takes for apparatus to leave the station once they have been notified. SFD times received were for EMS only; therefore, the NFPA standard would be 60 seconds. SFD times were 65 seconds or only 8.3% higher; however, fire turnout times were not provided. The Fire Department leadership should begin to track turnout times and although only slightly higher than NFPA standards; striving to reach the NFPA standard. Priority 2 Response Time Data Opportunities In order to determine the above times for PSAP, Fire Department, and No or Limited Agency Control numerous sources of data needed to be considered and in many cases hand counted. The result is that the Fire Department appears to be closer to the NFPA standards than their (not PSAP) data would reflect as illustrated in the fire department data provided illustrated below: Table 15: SFD Response Time Data Submitted 2014 Goal Turnout Time EMS/60 sec Fire/80 sec 90% 77.6% 77.9% Drive Time 90% EMS/69.3% Fire/ No Data Total Response Time No Data No Data Scene Time No Standard 36% = Min No Data McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 74

75 For example the 2014 Turnout/Out the Door Time hand counted by the consultants was only five seconds or 8.3% higher than the NFPA standard; whereas, the Fire Department s data indicates they are 22.4% higher. The opportunity for the Fire Department and City is to place significant emphasis on data as one of the leadership tools for management of the Fire Department. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 75

76 Fire Suppression/EMS System Operations Fire Department Operations The Fire Department staffs all engine and ladder companies as required by the labor contract. On a daily basis this usually means staffing two engines and a ladder or quint. The Fire Department responds to all fire and EMS emergencies within the City of Shelbyville. The Shelbyville Fire Department does respond to the three Townships that they provide fire protection services by contracts. The three Townships are Marion Township, Addison Township and Shelby Township. The contracts require that the City of Shelbyville responds with a least one fire engine with three personnel to any fire call within each Township. The City of Shelbyville Fire Department does respond with an engine or quint to any ambulance call within these three Townships. The Shelbyville Fire Department does provide water rescue services as they participate in the Shelby County Water Rescue Team. For most other special service teams type services the City of Shelbyville would request assistance from other outside agencies. The other services included incidents or emergencies involving hazardous materials, weapons of mass destruction, rope rescue, high angle rescue, trench rescue, heavy rescue and urban search and rescue. The primary outside agency that assistance would be requested from would be the City of Indianapolis Fire Department. Basically for any fire calls all three fire stations would respond to the calls with the vehicles that are staffed on any given day. In the event an ambulance is out on an emergency call already the number of personnel available for the fire call would be reduced. There are nine other fire departments located in Shelby County, but they are all staffed by volunteer or paid-on-call personnel. Receiving mutual aid from these outside fire departments will depend on the time of day that the request for help is required. All fire apparatus are equipped with Advanced Life Support equipment and supplies; which means in most cases a fire apparatus will be able to respond and provide the services of a Paramedic Advanced Life Support vehicle with the exception of not being able to transport the patient. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 76

77 Ambulance Service Operations The Shelbyville Fire Department also operates the emergency ambulance service both within the City of Shelbyville and within Shelby County. The services within the City of Shelbyville are paid for by the taxpayers of the city. The Shelbyville Fire Department also provides ambulance services to all of Shelby County by an agreement that has been in place for many decades. As previously stated in this report, the area of square miles that the ambulance service responds to is significant. The Fire Department operates with two advanced life support paramedic ambulances in-service on a daily basis. On days when staffing allows, the third ambulance is placed in service, but this policy was just implemented in early In the past, the Shelbyville Fire Department relied on the services of a private ambulance service if a third ambulance were to be required. The Fire Chief informed the consultants that the private ambulance service often was not available to provide an ambulance because they were already committed to another call. On most EMS calls the Fire Department responds with an ambulance and with either an engine or the quint in the City of Shelbyville. On most EMS calls with the three Townships that the City of Shelbyville contracts with for fire protection is the same response as the city is in the normal manner. The response normally is an ambulance and an engine or quint. This is due to the fact that the City of Shelbyville is the fire department for these three Townships. For EMS calls outside the City and within Shelby County the normal response is an ambulance, but the local fire department in the community they are responding to will be requested to respond to the scene also. A number of the communities in the county, in addition to having a fire department, have first responders for emergency medical emergencies and at least one fire department has emergency medical technicians on their department. There are also a few fire departments where members of the City of Shelbyville Fire Department are volunteers and in some cases these personnel are paramedics. If any off-duty paramedic responds on a call they may act as a member of the Shelbyville Fire Department in order to be covered by the paramedic license and protocols. If the Shelbyville Fire Department ambulance McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 77

78 is responding to a community in the county and they request the local fire department but they get no response, they may request a mutual aid fire department to respond to the call. The Shelbyville Fire Department ambulance service receives the services of a medical director from Major Hospital at no cost to the City of Shelbyville. The Shelbyville Fire Department ambulances transport primarily to Major Hospital located near downtown Shelbyville. It should be noted that the new Major Hospital is currently being constructed just north of I-74 and the Hwy 9 interchange in the City of Shelbyville. With the new hospital being located north of I-74 it is expected that the time an ambulance is out on calls will be extended for a longer period of time for most calls. The majority of patient transports are to Major Hospital, but the ambulance may transport to other hospitals that have a certain specialty. Most of these specialty hospitals are located in the area of the City of Indianapolis, which means usually that the length of the trip to the hospital will be at least 25 miles one way. The Fire Department expressed its concern with the need for a third ambulance to be placed in service on a daily basis due to the number of ambulance calls they respond to and the distance and time to respond too many of these calls. The Fire Department expressed the concern about the large number of calls into the county and the distance to travel to these calls and the length of time spent on these calls. Unfortunately the current data did not support the fact that 50% of the calls by the Shelbyville Fire Department are outside the city. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 78

79 Staffing/Staffing Methodology City of Shelbyville Fire Department Staffing The City of Shelbyville Fire Department has a current approved staffing level of 60 career positions. This includes 57 line personnel and three staff officers including the Fire Chief, Deputy Chief and EMS Chief. In addition there is one civilian fire inspector and one civilian administrative assistant. The following table illustrates the rank structure of the department: Table 16: Total FD Membership Shelbyville Fire Department Staffing Position Number Fire Chief 1 Deputy Chief 1 EMS Chief 1 Battalion Chief (shift commander) 3 Captain 3 Lieutenant 6 Firefighter/Paramedic/EMT 45 Civilian Fire Inspector 1 Civilian Administrative Assistant 1 Total 62 The Fire Chief, Deputy Fire Chief, EMS Chief, Fire Inspector and the Administrative Assistant all work a 40 hour work week. All of them with the exception of the Administrative Assistant may and do respond to emergency calls while off duty. The remainder of the department members work a 24-hour duty shift and are assigned to one of three different shifts identified as A shift, B shift or C shift. Each of the three 24-hour duty shifts has assigned one Battalion Chief, one Captain, two Lieutenants and 15 firefighters that may be either paramedics or emergency medical technicians for a total shift assignment of 19 personnel. Of the 57 department members assigned to the 24 hour shifts there are 40 certified as paramedics, 14 certified as emergency medical technicians, and three non-emergency medical technicians. The following figure illustrates the City of Shelbyville Fire Department Organizational Chart: McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 79

80 Figure 14: Fire Department Organizational Chart Mayor Board of Public Works and Safety Fire Chief Deputy Chief EMS Chief Administrative Assistant Fire Inspector Chief Fire Investigator PIO Pubic Education A Shift Commander EMS Training Investigator B Shift Commander C Shift Commander Training SOG Committee Training Facility Committee Investigator Chief Mechanic Assistant Mechanic Assistant Mechanic The following table indicates the average number of firefighters in communities with a population between 10,000 and 24,999 that participated in the NFPA Fire Service Survey. It is obvious that the range of the number of firefighters in these communities varies greatly. Table 17: Career Firefighters Rates by Population Protected, Career Firefighters Per 1,000 People Population Protected Low Median High 10,000 to 24, Source: NFPA Fire Service Survey McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 80

81 Station Shift Staffing The Fire Department shifts work 24 hours on duty and then 48 hours off duty. This is a common schedule for fire department staffing and results in a 56-hour work week for fire department line personnel. With full staffing, there are 19 personnel on duty including a Battalion Chief who is responsible for all operations on the 24-hour shift. With full staffing, there are 19 personnel on duty. Station #1 has ten or eleven including the Battalion Chief, Station #2 has five, and Station #3 has three personnel. Fire Station #1 has a Battalion Chief and a Captain assigned and each of the three fire stations has a lieutenant. The Battalion Chief has the discretion as to which station the 19 th person on duty is assigned. With the Fire Department staffed at 19 personnel on duty the personnel at each fire station and the vehicles they staff are as follows: Table 18: Shelbyville FD Full Staffing 19 Personnel Station Apparatus Staffing Station #1 Battalion Chief 1 Station #1 Engine #1 3 Station #1 Med Unit #1 2 Station #1 Med Unit #3 2 Station #1 Squad #2 2 Station #2 Ladder #2 3 Station #2 Med Unit #2 2 Station #3 Engine #3 3 Battalion Chief Discretion Varies 1 Total Staffing 19 Department firefighters may be off duty for many reasons, including vacation, Kelly days, holidays, training, sickness, work injuries, family medical leave, and funeral leave. The result is that it is not possible to maintain on-duty staffing of all 19 firefighters per shift. When firefighters are off duty, a minimum number of firefighters are needed on duty in order to operate the basic fire and EMS services that the department provides. This number is the minimum staffing number. For the City of Shelbyville Fire Department, the minimum staffing number was 13 personnel on duty, but it was recently changed to 14 personnel on duty. This results in six personnel on duty McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 81

82 at Fire Station #1 with the Battalion Chief, five personnel on duty at Fire Station #2, and three personnel on duty at Fire Station #3. With the previous minimum staffing level of 13 personnel on duty the department staffed Engine 3 at Station #3 with only two personnel. With the Fire Department staffed at minimum of 14 personnel on duty the personnel are assigned to the station and vehicles as indicated in the following table: Table 19: Shelbyville FD Minimum Staffing 14 Personnel Station Apparatus Staffing Station #1 Battalion Chief 1 Station #1 Engine #1 3 Station #1 Med Unit #1 2 Station #2 Ladder #2 3 Station #2 Med Unit #2 2 Station #3 Engine #3 3 Total Minimum Staffing 14 When there are 15 personnel on duty the Battalion Chief has the discretion as to which vehicle the 15th person will be assigned to on that shift. As of January 2015, when there are 16 personnel on duty Med #3 is staffed with two personnel as indicated in the following table: Table 20: Shelbyville FD Minimum Staffing 16 Personnel Station Apparatus Staffing Station #1 Battalion Chief 1 Station #1 Engine #1 3 Station #1 Med Unit #1 2 Station #1 Med Unit #3 2 Station #2 Ladder #2 3 Station #2 Med Unit #2 2 Station #3 Engine #3 3 Total Minimum Staffing 16 As stated previously both Med #1 and Med#2 are Advanced Life Support (ALS) Paramedic ambulances and Med #3 would be the same. All fire apparatus of the Shelbyville Fire Department are also equipped with Advanced Life Support (ALS) Paramedic equipment and supplies and basically can provide all of the ALS-Paramedic Medical Care as a Paramedic Ambulance except transportation of the patient to a medical facility. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 82

83 Recommendations Staffing The consultants would not recommend any additional staffing for the Fire Department until data collections methods improve to the status that the justification for additional staffing is available and accurate. Priority 5 The consultants would not recommend any additional staffing for the Fire Department until the issues with allowing the granting of Kelly Days has been addressed since the number of Kelly days being provided to all members of the Fire Department now equal over six full-time positions in equivalent time worked. The issue of Kelly Days is further addressed in the Human Resources section. Priority 5 McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 83

84 Standards of Response Coverage The Commission on Fire Accreditation International (CFAI) defines standards of response coverage as being those adopted written policies and procedures that determine the distribution, concentration and reliability of fixed and mobile response forces for fire, emergency medical services, hazardous materials and other forces of technical response. CFAI uses the terms standards of response coverage and standards of coverage interchangeably throughout their description of the program. The consultants will discuss the SFD and the factors involving what is referred to as community risk and all hazard risk potential as it relates to emergency response throughout the community. Distribution Distribution: The locating of geographically distributed, first due resources, for all risk initial intervention. These station locations are needed to assure rapid deployment to minimize and mitigate average, routine emergencies. Distribution is measured by the percentage of the jurisdiction covered by the first-due units within adopted public policy response times. Concentration Concentration: Is the spacing of multiple resources arranged (close enough together) so that an initial "effective response force" can be assembled on-scene within adopted public policy time frames? An initial effective response force is that which will most likely stop the escalation of the emergency for each risk type. Concentration is measured by risk type category; high-risk areas need second and third due units in shorter time frames than in typical or low risk areas. Reliability Reliability looks at actual incident history data to measure historical performance. How reliable is the response system, does the department frequently see multiple calls for service and do these degrade service? Are there predictable times of the day, week or year when queued calls occur? Can these occurrences be controlled or can peak hour staffing be used? McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 84

85 Standards of Coverage Overview Standards of response coverage are an integral part of strategic planning for fire protection. They are the allocation and distribution of resources to meet the goals and objectives of a community s master fire protection plan. Standards of Cover (SOC) also referred to as Standards of Response Coverage (SORC) or Deployment Analysis is a system for analyzing resource deployment, to determine whether a department is properly deployed to meet its community s risks and expectations. Standards of Cover (SOC) are applicable to all fire departments and districts, career and volunteer, large and small. However, there is no 'one size fits all' SOC. The SOC must take into account factors unique to the community the department serves. The SOC identifies agency-specific performance goals to which fire service leaders compare actual performance to measure the effectiveness of their fire department or district. The SOC process is not just about the number of fire stations and fire fighters, the SOC supports community and firefighter safety by identifying the number of personnel that should arrive at each risk type to safely and effectively accomplish the community s objectives. A small fire department or district s SOC may be only a few pages in length, while a large department s SOC can be upwards of one hundred pages. A well-written SOC should provide the authority having jurisdiction, fire chief, and members: Defensible position related to strategic plan and future funding requests. Defensible position related to adverse events and the criteria used to make your decisions. A clear method to assess past, present and future service delivery decisions. Determining a Fire Department s SOC Benchmarks The following agencies offer guidelines to help fire service leaders determine SOC performance benchmarks for their department or district. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 85

86 National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) The CFAI draws many of their core competencies from portions of NFPA standards but unlike NFPA do not adopt the position of one-size fits all. The national/industry standards section of this report described the influence of NFPA standards. NFPA 1710 would be the standards that would apply to the SFD and could be helpful in establishing SOC benchmarks. National Fire Protection Association Standards 1710: Organization and Development of Fire Suppression, Emergency Medical Operations, and Special Operations to the Public by Career Fire Departments 2010 Edition Commission on Fire Accreditation International (CFAI) The CFAI was discussed in the national/industry Standards section of this report; however, the standards of coverage concept is the 'core competency' in the self-assessment process that must be met for an agency to be accredited by the CFAI. CFAI employs a comprehensive approach to deployment analysis. In addition to considering travel time and distance, several other deployment factors are analyzed, such as call concurrency, risk assessment, and deployment based on getting enough resources to a given risk for an effective outcome. CFAI believes that a community should first determine the levels of service it wishes to provide and then develop standards of coverage to provide that level of service. Key Elements of a SOC Plan The key elements of a SOC plan are outlined below. 1. Overview - The study starts with a description of: (a) the community served, including demographics, geography, and specific unique community features; and (b) the agency, including statutory authority, funding mechanisms, department history, and types of services provided. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 86

87 2. Community outcome expectations - What does the community expect of the department? Has there ever been a discussion with the elected officials about what service goals the department ought to deliver and measure itself against? 3. Community risk assessment - This is a critical step in the SOC process. Response standards should be identified based on risk classification. The four classes are Low, Moderate, Significant, and Maximum risk: Low risk: Areas zoned and used for agricultural purposes, open space, and other low intensity uses. Moderate risk: Areas zoned for single family properties, small commercial and office uses, and equivalently sized business activities. High risk: Business districts, high density residential, light industrial, and large mercantile centers. Maximum risk: High rise, unprotected, residential and commercial properties, heavy industrial, and high life risk institutional properties. Risks, other than fire are also considered, such as emergency medical service demand, technical rescue, transportation, natural hazards, weather, and others. The goal is to determine the probability of an event and the potential consequences. The SOC process analyzes deployment based on the risk assessment. That is, how many people must arrive in what time frame, properly trained and equipped, to achieve the desired outcome? 4. Distribution study - This is the location geographically, of first-due resources, typically engines. These station locations are needed to assure rapid deployment to minimize and mitigate average, routine emergencies. Distribution is measured by the percentage of the jurisdiction covered by first-due units within the adopted response time benchmarks. A distribution statement must have a percentage performance measure and a time measure and state a service level objective. Distribution is the strategic placement of available resources so that any hazards or risks, regarding life property and environment are covered appropriately. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 87

88 Example of a distribution statement: For 90% of all incidents, the first-due unit shall arrive within six minutes total response time. The first-due unit shall be capable of advancing the first line for fire control or starting rescue or providing Basic Life Support for medical incidents. 5. Concentration study - Concentration is the spacing of multiple resources arranged (close enough together) so that an initial "effective response force" can be assembled on-scene within adopted public policy time frames. An initial effective response force is that which will most likely stop the escalation of the emergency for each risk type. Concentration is measured by risk type category; high-risk areas need second and third due units in shorter time frames than in typical or low risk areas. A concentration statement must have a percentage performance measure, time measure and state a service level objective. Example of a concentration statement: In a Moderate risk area, an initial effective response force shall arrive within 8 minutes travel or 10 minutes total response time, 90% of the time, and be able to provide 1,500gpm for firefighting, or be able to handle a five-patient emergency medical incident. 6. Historical response reliability - Response reliability is the probability, expressed as a percentage, that the required amount of staff and apparatus will be available when a fire or emergency call is received, and how often these resources are at the station. There are times when a call is received when the first-due company is unavailable, requiring a later-due company to be assigned. Simultaneous calls for service (concurrency) is a problem for fire agencies of all sizes. Analysis of multiple call frequency can produce meaningful results. An agency s deployment may look great for travel time on a map, yet be problematic due to simultaneous calls for service. Reliability looks at actual incident history data to measure historical performance. How reliable is the response system, does the department frequently see multiple calls for service and do these McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 88

89 degrade service? Are there predictable times of the day, week or year when queued calls occur? Can these occurrences be controlled or can peak hour staffing be used? 7. Historical response effectiveness - Response effectiveness is the percentage of compliance the existing system delivers. How well is the agency meeting the existing service objectives? If, for example, the current deployment is supposed to answer all calls within x minutes, y percent of the time, does it? If not, why not? 8. Overall evaluation - The first seven elements of the SOC are each a part of the deployment analysis. In this section, all the study parts are evaluated as a whole to determine if changes in deployment should be proposed. Proposed standards of coverage statements by risk type are formed. 9. Goals and Objectives - These are the specific statements related to staffing, response times, and infrastructure developments which resulted from the deployment analysis. These goal statements and service level objectives must include: Rationale for the goal. This includes reference to the national, regional, or local standards used to establish the goal, conformity to the risk assessment, and the supporting deployment analysis. Estimated cost for implementation of the goal. Time frame for implementation of the goal. Method to measure the stated goal and/or objective. The most advantageous part of working on the core competencies of the CFAI is the process not the results. Leadership of the service department will literally self-examine every aspect of their organization asking: what service do we provide, what is the cost of that service, should we be providing that service, is there a more cost-effective manner in providing our core services, and meet the three basis components of the SORC of distribution, concentration, and reliability? McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 89

90 SORC Integration with the Shelbyville FD Standard of Response Coverage is determined by the community absent of any non-mandatory requirements and consists of the analysis of the components outlined above. What is particularly difficult for those who administer fire/ems organizations is the absence of the second component detailed above community outcome expectations. In most cases, those who govern and provide funding for fire departments concentrate on the fiscal aspects of providing that service. Although this is an essential responsibility for those who govern, many do not articulate exactly what level of service they expect. What are acceptable response times? What level of fire/ems service do they want to provide to the citizens? What non-emergency services can the fire department provide to the community? Thus, in many cases, the fire chiefs, not a unified team of governing officials and fire department leadership, determine the SORC for the community. Governing boards/department officials are constantly faced with the issue that there are more good causes than tax dollars to provide those services. Therefore, they strive to provide as many services at the highest level with available dollars. Absent of citizen outcry, governing officials have little incentive or motivation to suddenly change service levels. Thus, fire and EMS services are a quality of life issue that must be determined by community/department leaders. The question that must be addressed is what level of risk to its residents is acceptable by those who govern the SFD? During the site visits by the consulting team, a close look and evaluation of the SFD response areas were examined, visited, discussed with department personnel and viewed from a community risk analysis viewpoint. Potential risk hazard occupancies were discussed and evaluated by the consultants to better understand and assist in determining risk levels to the community. Discussions were carried out with the administrative staff officers including the Fire Chief and Battalion Chiefs to identify their own particular views and professional opinions on the risks they felt were of particular concern within the community. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 90

91 It was through this evaluation process that the following occupancies/issues were identified as having a high risk potential to life safety concerns for the residents protected by the City of Shelbyville Fire Department: Indiana Grand Racing and Casino Complex Penske Logistics City Airport and National Guard Facility Potential of Multiple Vehicle Accidents and Hazardous Materials Incidents on Interstate 74 Multiple Assisted living facilities Major Hospital Both Current and New Locations Significant size of response area for EMS Services throughout Shelby County As to evaluating the SFD community s risk level, it is the consultants opinion and concurrence that each of the identified areas listed above do in fact carry a higher level of risk within the community. In determining a fire department s standard of response coverage-state of readiness, all aspects of this state of preparedness discussed within this section must be addressed and independently reviewed. With this in mind, the consulting team does have a heightened level of concern regarding these highlighted issues. Addressing each of these areas of concern would work to enhance and improve the state of preparedness and the ability of the SFD to handle such major incidents. Recommendations Community Risk/Standards of Response Coverage The standards of response coverage is a worthwhile internal assessment to address the all hazard risk potential impacting the department. Within the next year the SFD should utilize this tool in developing a strategic plan. Priority 3 All future capital expenditures should be evaluated against the SORC distribution, concentration, and reliability criteria. Priority 5 McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 91

92 National/Industry Standards The Shelbyville Fire Department has standards (some mandatory and some advisory) which impacts how they should provide fire and EMS. This section will address the federal and state codes and standards which apply to City of Shelbyville and the district they protect. National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Non-mandatory The National Fire Protection Association creates and maintains private, copyrighted, standards and codes for usage and adoption by local governments. NFPA was formed in 1896 by a group of insurance firms; their mission was to reduce the worldwide burden of fire and other hazards on the quality of life by providing and advocating consensus codes, and standards, research, training, and education. Today NFPA members include more than 70,000 individuals representing nearly 100 nations. The first fire department to be represented in the NFPA was the New York City Fire Department in Today, the NFPA includes representatives from some fire departments, many fire insurance companies, many manufacturing associations, some trade unions, many trade associations, and engineering associations NFPA is responsible for 300 codes and standards that are designed to minimize the risk and effects of fire by establishing criteria for building, processing, design, service, and installation all over the world. It s more than 200 technical codes and standards development committees are comprised of over 6,000 volunteer seats. Source: NFPA website/overview There is much disagreement as to the meaning of the words codes and standards. NFPA defines a standard as: A document, the main text of which contains only mandatory provisions using the word shall to indicate requirements and which is in a form generally suitable for mandatory reference by another standard or code or for adoption into law. Non-mandatory provisions are not to be considered a part of the requirements of a standard and shall be McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 92

93 located in an appendix, annex, footnote, informational note, or other means as permitted in the Manual of Style for NFPA Technical Committee Documents. NFPA defines a code as: A standard that is an extensive compilation of provisions covering broad subject matter or that is suitable for adoption into law independently of other codes and standards. Source: NFPA Glossary of Terms 2013 edition If one were accepting the NFPA definition, it would appear that all standards listed in any NFPA code other than in the appendixes, are in fact mandatory. Such would be the case if a governing body were to adopt the code in which the standard is listed. However, governing bodies are not required to adopt the NFPA codes; whereas, many view the NFPA terms codes and standards as a benchmark by which to judge against. The understanding of the significances of NFPA codes and standards becomes more complicated in the event in which a firefighter might be seriously injured or killed in the line of duty. In these events, NFPA codes have the effect of a double-edged sword; the fire department is not required to meet them, but the fire department would most likely be judged against these standards by a host of investigating agencies. Therefore, it is advantageous for everyone in a decision-making position to be familiar with NFPA codes and standards. Leadership s decisions pertaining to resources and the deployment of those resources should be based on knowledge of current industry standards as outlined by NFPA. NFPA 1710 or NFPA 1720 NFPA adopted two standards addressing fire department organization and development: NFPA 1710 (Organization and Development of Fire Suppression, Emergency Medical Operations, and Special Operations to the Public by Career Fire Departments), and a sister standard NFPA 1720 (Organization and Development of Fire Suppression, Emergency Medical Operations, and Special Operations to the Public by Volunteer/Paid-On-Call Fire Departments). McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 93

94 Inasmuch as the SFD has all career members it clearly falls under the NFPA 1710 standards, which is the more stringent of the two standards. The consultants recommend that the City does not adopt NFPA 1710; rather they should attempt to meet as many of the NFPA 1710 standards as feasibly and fiscally possible. Recommendation NFPA Standard 1710 The City should not adopt NFPA 1710 standard. Adoption would include the adoption of all OSHA and NFPA standards by reference included in the document. However, a plan should be developed to meet as many NFPA 1710 standards as possible in the future. Priority 5 NFPA 1710 Suppression Team NFPA 1710 Section (2010 edition) requires the initial alarm assignment to a structure fire in a 2,000 square foot home [two-story single-family dwelling without basement and with no exposures (defined in the same section)] involving a working fire (a working fire is defined as a fire within a structure of such magnitude that an aggressive interior or exterior attack will occur with a minimum of two hose lines for suppression) would require 14 personnel arriving at the scene within eight minutes of the initial full alarm assignment 90% of the time (section ) as illustrated in the table below: Table 21: NFPA 1710 Deployment Standard NFPA 1710 Deployment Standards Assignment Personnel Needed Incident Command 1 Pump Operator 1 Attack Line firefighters 4 Support - 1 each attack line 2 Search & Rescue 2 Ventilation 2 Initial Rapid Intervention Crew 2 Total W/O Aerial 14 Aerial - if utilized 1 Required Personnel 15 As the above table illustrates, one additional firefighter is required if an aerial device with pump operation is placed into service, for a total personnel count of 15. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 94

95 # of Days Shelbyville Fire Department Suppression Team The department operates three 24-hour shifts with minimum staffing at 14 (this was raised from minimum staffing of 13 in January 2015) and maximum staffing of 19; which did not occur on any day in Maximum of 19 does not occur because of vacation, sick, Kelly days (supposed to be used by management to control overtime see HR section), or excused absences. See table below for number of personnel on duty each day of 2014: Table 22: Staffing Levels per Day Staffing # # of Days Total Days = 365 Figure 15: Staffing Levels per Day # On Duty Therefore, in 2015 there will be 100 additional days of overtime to meet the new minimum staffing level; with that said however, the reason for the increase in minimum staffing is to McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 95

96 ensure there are a minimum of three individuals assigned to Station #3, which the consultants support. It would appear that at best SFD could provide 265 days of meeting the NFPA suppression team standard for a reported structure fire. This is to assume that every station was staffed and available to respond immediately. However, the average three-year simultaneous call data was 19.1% or 21.5% (conflicting sources) of the time; therefore, all personnel would not be available to respond. In addition if the aerial were to be utilized it would require 15 personnel which only occurred 169 days in Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Mandatory OSHA states that once fire fighters begin the interior attack on an interior structural fire, the atmosphere is assumed to be Immediately Dangerous to Life or Health (IDLH) and section (g) (4) of OSHA s Respiratory Protection Standard, 29, CFR [two-in/two-out] applies. OSHA defines interior structural firefighting as the physical activity of fire suppression, rescue, or both inside of buildings or enclosed structures which are involved in a fire situation beyond the incipient stage. This rule is commonly referred to as the two-in/two-out rule, which is OSHA s mandatory requirement for interior firefighting OSHA requires that all fire fighters engaged in interior structural firefighting must wear SCBAs. SCBAs must be NIOSH-certified, positive pressure, with a minimum duration of 30 minutes. [29 CFR (f) (1) (ii)] and [29 CFR (g) (4) (iii)] OSHA requires that all workers engaged in interior structural firefighting operations beyond the incipient stage use SCBA and work in teams of two or more. [29 CFR (g) (4) (I)] Fire fighters operating in the interior of the structure must operate in a buddy system and maintain voice or visual contact with one another at all times. This assists in assuring accountability within the team. [29 CFR (g) (4) (I)] McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 96

97 OSHA requires at least one team of two or more properly equipped and trained fire fighters are present outside the structure before any team(s) of fire fighters enters the structural fire. This requirement is intended to assure that the team outside the structure has the training, clothing, and equipment to protect them and, if necessary, safely and effectively rescue fire fighters inside the structure. For high-rise operations, the team(s) would be staged below the IDLH atmosphere. [29 CFR (g) (3) (iii)] OSHA requires that one of the two outside person's function is to account for and, if necessary, initiate a fire fighter rescue. Aside from this individual dedicated to tracking interior personnel, the other designated person(s) is permitted to take on other roles, such as incident commander in charge of the emergency incident, safety officer, or equipment operator. However, the other designated outside person(s) cannot be assigned tasks that are critical to the safety and health of any other employee working at the incident. Any task that the outside fire fighter(s) performs while in standby rescue status must not interfere with the responsibility to account for those individuals in the hazard area. Any task, evolution, duty, or function being performed by the standby individual(s) must be such that the work can be abandoned, without placing any employee at additional risk, if rescue or other assistance is needed. [29 CFR (g) (4) (Note 1)] Any entry into an interior structural fire beyond the incipient stage, regardless of the reason, must be made in teams of two or more individuals. [29 CFR (g) (4) (I)]. Recommendation OSHA The Fire Department leadership must ensure that the OSHA two-in/two-out rule is practiced on all structure fires. Priority 5 Insurance Service Offices, Inc. (ISO) Non-mandatory Insurance Services Office (ISO) ISO is a leading source of information about property casualty insurance risk that provides risk information to many industries, including government. The ISO Public Protection Classification program is designed to help establish fire insurance premiums for residential and commercial properties based in part on a community s fire protection services. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 97

98 Although the primary purpose of this tool is to rate fire protection from which insurance rates can be established, ISO ratings have been one of the few benchmarks to compare community fire protection. Realizing the true intent of the ISO classification, it should not be the sole determining factor in establishing public fire protection. Rather, the schedule should be considered an instrument for comparison and an additional factor from which to make a decision. ISO Changes ISO filed a proposed revised schedule in December 2012 with changes that focus on areas that have a proven effect on fire suppression and prevention, as well as revisions that align the schedule s requirements with those of nationally accepted standards. In January 2013 they have filed revisions both to modernize and enhance its Fire Suppression Rating Schedule (FSRS). The schedule revisions would recognize proactive efforts to reduce fire risk and frequency. In July 2014 new Public Protection Classifications for split class 9 and split class 8B were implemented. New Classifications Through ongoing research and loss experience analysis, ISO identified additional differentiation in fire loss experience within ISO PPC program, which resulted in the revised classifications. ISO based the differing fire loss experience on the fire suppression capabilities of each community. The new classifications will improve the predictive value for insurers while benefiting both commercial and residential property owners. Here are the new classifications and what they mean. Split Classifications ISO developed a split classification for a community for example 5/9 the first number is the class that applies to properties within 5 road miles of the responding fire station and 1,000 feet of a creditable water supply, such as a fire hydrant, suction point, or dry hydrant. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 98

99 The second number is the class that applies to properties within 5 road miles of a fire station but beyond 1,000 feet of a creditable water supply. ISO have revised the classification to reflect more precisely the risk of loss in a community, replacing Class 9 and 8B in the second part of a split classification with revised designations. What s Changed with the New Classifications? ISO published the new classifications as X and Y formerly the "9" and "8B" portion of the split classification, respectively. For example: A community currently displayed as a split 6/9 classification will now be a split 6/6X classification; with the "6X" denoting what was formerly classified as "9". Similarly, a community currently graded as a split 6/8B classification will now be a split 6/6Y classification, the "6Y" denoting what was formerly classified as "8B". Communities graded with single 9 or 8B classifications will remain intact. Table 23: New ISO Split Classifications Prior New Classification Classification Prior Classification New Classification 1/9 1/1X 1/8B 1/1Y 2/9 2/2X 2/8B 2/2Y 3/9 3/3X 3/8B 3/3Y 4/9 4/4X 4/8B 4/4Y 5/9 5/5X 5/8B 5/5Y 6/9 6/6X 6/8B 6/6Y 7/9 7/7X 7/8B 7/7Y 8/9 8/8X 8/8B 8/8Y 9 9 8B 9 What s Changed? ISO is still maintaining split classes, but it s how ISO represent them to insurers that s changed. The new designations reflect a reduction in fire severity and loss and have the potential to reduce property insurance premiums. Benefits of the Revised Split Class Designations McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 99

100 To the fire service, the revised designations identify enhanced fire suppression capabilities used throughout the fire protection area To the community, the new classes reward a community s fire suppression efforts by showing a more reflective designation To the individual property owner, the revisions offer the potential for decreased property insurance premiums New Water Class ISO data also shows that risks located more than 5 but less than 7 road miles from a responding fire station with a creditable water source within 1,000 feet had better loss experience than those farther than 5 road miles from a responding fire station with no creditable water source. ISO introduced a new classification 10W to recognize the reduced loss potential of such properties. What s changed with Class 10W? Class 10W is property-specific. Not all properties in the 5-to-7-mile area around the responding fire station will qualify. The difference between Class 10 and 10W is that the 10W-graded risk or property is within 1,000 feet of a creditable water supply. Creditable water supplies include fire protection systems using hauled water in any of the split classification areas. What s The Benefit of Class 10W? 10W gives credit to risks within 5 to 7 road miles of the responding fire station and within 1,000 feet of a creditable water supply. That s reflective of the potential for reduced property insurance premiums. ISO New Fire Suppression Rating Schedule Since July, 2013 any community being evaluated by ISO will be graded on the revised FSRS. These changes are also incorporated in the Public Protection Classification (PPC). This applies to cities, towns, villages, fire protection districts, and other graded areas that are evaluated based on the major elements of their fire suppression system. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 100

101 The revised FSRS makes increased reference to the national consensus standards of the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), American Water Works Association (AWWA), and Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials International (APCO). Using feedback from those organizations and many other industry associations, ISO revised its PPC evaluation to make it more accurately reflect modern fire prevention and suppression capabilities. By incorporating more direct references to national consensus standards, ISO is reinforcing that it doesn t just write standards but uses recognized fire suppression and prevention practices as the basis for the PPC evaluations. The new schedule continues to evaluate three major categories of fire suppression: fire department, emergency communications, and water supply. In addition, it includes a new Community Risk Reduction section that recognizes community efforts to reduce losses through fire prevention, public fire safety education, and fire investigation. The addition of the new risk reduction section represents a major shift in emphasis in the FSRS, giving incentives to communities that strive to reduce fire severity proactively through a structured program of fire prevention activities. Examples of fire prevention programs include wild land-urban interface ordinances, certificate of occupancy inspections, and inspections of fire prevention equipment. The revised FSRS continues to provide incentives to communities to strengthen their public fire prevention programs. The revision reflects current trends in fire protection, credits a community s fire prevention and fire protection capabilities in a measured, analytical way, and improves the predictive nature of the evaluation process (Source: ISO web site). There has been growing involvement in community efforts to limit losses before they happen, led largely by fire departments and their personnel. It is not easy to quantify the efforts made toward fire prevention and fire safety education, but there is enough anecdotal evidence to indicate that the more done to prevent a fire, the less likely a fire will happen or that it will be a major event. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 101

102 The following are samples of the FSRS revisions: Fire Department Section The fire department section recognizes fire departments use various methods to solve the critical issues of economic constraints as it relates to recruitment and retention. One way that ISO addressed this is through enhanced recognition for automatic-aid, personnel, and equipment. This includes an increase in the factors relating to automatic-aid for fire departments that operate with common fire ground procedures. In addition, ISO now offers credit to fire departments that develop and use standard operating procedures and incident management systems. ISO, based on NFPA 1710, also considers a fire department s deployment analysis as a potential alternative to ISO s traditional road-mile distribution study. That study established optimal distances for standard response districts around each fire station 1.5 road miles for an engine company and 2.5 road miles for a ladder service company. In conjunction with that change, ISO shifted emphasis from the number of apparatus and equipment carried, to the proper deployment of those resources by adjusting point totals for the relevant sections. ISO modified its apparatus equipment lists to include only items specified in NFPA That change will more closely align the schedule with consensus standards and allow additional flexibility to revise ISO lists if there are significant changes to NFPA Many other areas of the fire department evaluation make increased reference to consensus standards, particularly in fire department training, where credit will now be available for officer certification. The evaluation of pre-incident planning is now based on annual rather than semiannual inspections. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 102

103 Some of the changes directly affect the minimum facilities evaluated by the FSRS. By referencing NFPA 1901, ISO increased minimum pump capacities for apparatus needed to qualify for minimal recognition under Class 9 and separately for Classes 1 through 8B to follow NFPA requirements more closely. ISO also placed additional emphasis on firefighter safety, such as personal protective equipment and increased recognition for driver/operator training, with the realization that personnel can carry out successful fire suppression operations only if they are able to avoid accidents and injury. Emergency Communications Section One of the most rapidly changing areas in fire suppression has been in communications. The revised FSRS referencing APCO standards reflects current technology by incorporating major revisions to this section, with a pronounced shift in emphasis from hardware, such as phone lines and radio equipment, to a more performance-oriented evaluation. The element of time is critical in allowing firefighters to attack a fire in its early stages, and the revised schedule places greater value on a communication center s ability to answer and process emergency calls in time frames specified by the NFPA. ISO also eliminated evaluation of phone lines and phone listings; instead, it considers enhanced 911, wireless technology, VOIP, CAD, and GIS capabilities. Water Supply Section In the water supply section, the FSRS now includes specific credit for communities, water utilities, or fire departments that enhance their understanding of a water system through periodic fire hydrant flow testing that meets NFPA and AWWA standards. The revised schedule also includes additional credit for flow through a single hydrant from a maximum of 1,000 gpm to 1,500 gpm, in accordance with AWWA. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 103

104 Credit Point Changes While the total credit points for the existing major categories remain unchanged, ISO increased or decreased the point weights for some sections. The total credit points still are: Emergency Communications (formerly Fire Alarm ): 10 points Fire Department: 50+ points Water Supply: 40 points The community risk reduction section has a weight of 5.5 points, resulting in a revised available points. The inclusion of the new section with its extra points allows recognition of communities that include effective fire prevention practices without applying undue penalty for those that have not yet adopted such measures. An important change throughout the revised FSRS is the way ISO credits record keeping. When no documentation exists to substantiate an item under review, ISO will not give credit for the section unless otherwise stated in the schedule. That means essentially a no records, no credit approach. ISO also established a new limit of 75% of the credit points possible when only partial documentation of an item exists. ISO implemented those changes to emphasize the importance of proper record keeping. Ongoing Evaluation The revised FSRS was an effort that took several years and involved a variety of stakeholders in organizations that deal with water, fire, and emergency communications; federal, state, and local officials; insurance regulators; and insurers from across the country. But the introduction of the revised schedule is only the beginning and will not be an once-in-a-lifetime event. ISO is making a commitment to refine and revise the FSRS every three to five years. During that period, ISO will collect data regarding the relationships between the items in the schedule and their effect on fire loss. An evaluation of a community s firefighting ability is an ongoing process. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 104

105 ISO top insurer customers continue to tell states that the FSRS and PPC program help them predict loss and underwrite more accurately. Statistical data on insurance losses demonstrates the relationship between better fire protection and lower fire losses. By securing lower fire insurance premiums for communities with better fire protection, ISO programs provide incentives for communities that choose to improve their firefighting services. (Source: ISO web site) ISO Point Scale In review, ISO evaluates fire departments on a 100 point scale into three categories: 10% Receiving and Handling Fire Alarms (Dispatch) 50% Fire Department 40% Water Supply The best rating is a Public Protection Classification (PPC) of 1 and the lowest is 10 as illustrated in the table below: Table 24: ISO PPC Point Scale PPC Points or more to to to to to to to to to 9.99 Shelbyville Fire Department ISO Classification The City of Shelbyville received correspondence from ISO in March of 2014 that the recent review results and the actual ISO Public Protection Classification document for SFD would become effective in August, The City of Shelbyville received a split classification of Class 3/10. The Class 3 applies to properties within 5 road miles of a fire station and within McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 105

106 1,000 feet of a fire hydrant. Class 10 (XX or XY) applies to properties beyond 1,000 feet of a fire hydrant but within 5 road miles of a recognized fire station. The table below illustrates the number of departments in Indiana holding PPC classifications; the highlighted blue line illustrates the number and percentage of departments nationally and in Indiana that have a Class 3 rating as of Table 25: National & Indiana ISO Classes National % of Total Indiana % of Total Class % 0 0.0% Class % 2 0.1% Class 3 2, % % Class 4 6, % % Class 5 9, % % Class 6 8, % % Class 7 5, % % Class 8 1, % % Class 8B 1, % % Class 9 11, % % Class 10 1, % % The figures below illustrate the ISO Classes on the National level: McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 106

107 Figure 16: ISO National Classifications 2015 National 12,000 10,000 8,000 6,000 4,000 2,000 - Class Class Class Class Class Class Class Class Class Class Class B 9 10 # of FDs ,891 6,115 9,144 8,512 5,028 1,527 1,358 11,53 1,736 The figure below illustrates the ISO Classes Indiana 2015 Figure 17: ISO Classifications Indiana 2015 Indiana Class Class Class Class Class Class Class Class Class Class Class B 9 10 # of FDs The explanation of points awarded to the Shelbyville Fire Department in each of the categories for the Class 3 is illustrated in the table below: McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 107

108 Table 26: SFD ISO Points Each Category of Survey Feature Credit Given Maximum Credit Receiving & Handling Fire Alarms Credit for Emergency Reporting Credit for Telecommunicators Credit for Dispatch Circuits Credit Received Fire Department Credit for Engine Companies Credit for Reserve Pumpers Credit for Pumper Capacity Credit for Ladder Service Credit for Reserve Ladder & Service Trucks Credit for Deployment Analysis Credit for Company Personnel Credit for Training Credit for Operational Considerations Credit Received Water Supply Credit for Supply System Credit for Hydrants Credit for Inspection & Condition Credit Received Divergence* Community Risk Reduction Total Credit Center for Public Safety Excellence (CPSE) Non-mandatory A better evaluation tool exists today. The International Fire Chief s Association (IFCA) has developed a program called the Center for Public Safety Excellence (CPSE), formerly the Commission of Fire Accreditation International (CFAI). The Center for Public Safety Excellence measures the quality and performance of a particular fire service agency and will award national accreditation to those departments that pass the stringent criteria. Any future effort by the SFD to demonstrate competencies should be channeled towards the CPSE accreditation. The consultants do not recommend that the department, at this time, McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 108

109 attempt to become accredited; rather, they should use the CPSE standards as the benchmark of quality. The department has abundant opportunities to channel their efforts into better documentation, which is essential in any accreditation process. Although an essential responsibility for those who govern is to identify community outcome expectations, many do not articulate exactly what level of service they expect. What are acceptable response times? What level of fire service do they want to provide to the citizens? What non-emergency services can the fire department provide to the community? Thus, in many cases, the fire chiefs, not a unified team of governing officials and fire department leadership, determine the Standard of Response Coverage (SORC) for the community. Perhaps the Board of Public Works and Safety could be involved in setting the expectations for the City of Shelbyville. Governing boards/department officials are constantly faced with the issue that there are more good causes than tax dollars to provide those services. Therefore, they strive to provide as many services at the highest level with available dollars. Absent of citizen outcry, governing officials have little incentive or motivation to suddenly change service levels. Thus, fire and EMS services are a quality of life issue that must be determined by community/department leaders. CPSE accreditation is a structured process for documenting the levels of fire safety, prevention, fire safety education, suppression services currently provided, and for determining the future level of service the department should provide. CPSE accreditation asks the department to determine and document if its fire protection services are appropriate, adequate, and effective. The advantage to the CPSE program lies in the process of completing it. The department must literally examine every aspect of its existence and determine the most cost-effective means of providing service. This program requires a significant time commitment and effort on the part of the fire administration. Critics of the program emphasize the cost and time commitment needed for completion. These critics miss the point that the process of compliance with CPSE standards may keep the McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 109

110 department from catastrophic failure in the system of service delivery. Other critics claim it is nothing more than bragging rights, similar to an improved ISO classification. Again, the point is missed that a department that develops pride can often translate that pride into better performance and morale, which is priceless. Some fire departments have incorporated student interns from schools such as Oklahoma State University, which has one of the leading Fire Protection Safety Engineering Technology programs in the country, to assist the department in the accreditation process. These students usually work 8 12 weeks during the summer and live in the fire station, responding to calls for experience. The students receive compensation that has been negotiated with the department. Other students who have graduated from this program are often available to oversee and participate in the entire process, which can easily take months. If the Fire Department or the Board of Public Works and Safety determine that CPSE accreditation should be undertaken at some point in the future, the consultants recommend hiring a student intern to assist on the project. Recommendation CPSE The Fire Department should not seek international accreditation (CPSE) at this time; rather the CPSE should be used as a guide in reviewing department operations and the types of documentation needed. Priority 5 Recommendation National Standard General Although NFPA standards are not mandatory, it is in the City s best interest to become aware of the components in the standards in which the Department would be held accountable in the event of a catastrophic event. Priority 5 McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 110

111 Human Resources There are a number of components that are integrated in Human Resources recruitment, compensation & benefits, employee morale/recognition, policies and procedures, and the collective bargaining agreement. As in most union environments, the collective bargaining agreement controls many of these functions. Thus, making any changes can be difficult as both the City and the Union must agree. It is interesting, that the Shelbyville Fire Department is allowed to act as an independent department within the City. Although until recently, the Fire Department acted independently as well; however, has recently been coordinating its efforts with the human resources department. The City s handbook and policies need to apply to all employees not all employees except the Fire Department. The Shelbyville Fire Department is a department of the City not an independent agency and should not be allowed to circumvent policies and procedures that apply to all City employees. Typically, Human Resources salaries and benefits account for 70% or more of the budget; thus, one often looks to personnel and benefits when evaluating the budget. This section will first review some major areas of salary and time off benefits as it applies to the Fire Department as these areas provided the greatest discussion. Then, the Fire Department s overall Human Resource practices will be reviewed. Fair Labor Standards Act For the city of Shelbyville, there are several areas one needs to discuss in relation to the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) The 7k exemption for overtime calculation; Kelly days; and annualizing pay periods. It should be noted that all polices regarding calculation of overtime, Kelly days, and how and if time off is calculated in overtime is not documented within the contract nor within fire department SOG s. Thus, this analysis is based solely on what the Fire Chief says occurs and confirmation with payroll practices. The Supreme Court decision in Garcia v San Antonio Metropolitan Transit Authority et al (105 s.ct.1005) in 1985 required state and local governments to establish a work period in order to McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 111

112 identify overtime threshold limits. The basic regulation under the FLSA is the payment of overtime. According to the FLSA, individuals who work more than forty hours (40) per week are entitled to compensation at time and one-half. Municipalities can establish a work period of 7 to 28 days for individuals who meet the FLSA requirements in the police and fire departments. The overtime thresholds for the pay period are set forth in the 7k exemption of the Act. For example, a 28-day pay cycle in the fire department equates to 212 hours worked before overtime is earned. In August 2004, the Department of Labor (DOL) began enforcing new regulations dubbed the Fairpay Amendment. There were a number of changes to the Act; probably the most significant were changes to the language defining who is exempt from overtime payments. The FLSA defines who is covered under the Act as follows: The Act applies to enterprises with employees who engage in interstate commerce, produce goods for interstate commerce, or handle, sell, or work on goods or materials that have been moved in or produced for interstate commerce. For most firms, a test of not less than $500,000 in annual dollar volume of business applies (i.e., the Act does not cover enterprises with less than this amount of business). However, the Act does cover the following regardless of their dollar volume of business: and institutions of higher education; and federal, state, and local government agencies (Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, as amended 29 USC 201 et seq). The City is covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act and cannot negotiate its way out of a federal law. Thus, the Shelbyville Fire Department and City of Shelbyville must adhere all of the provisions of the FLSA regulation. FLSA 7K Exemption General Information The basic regulation under the FLSA is the payment of overtime. According to the FLSA, individuals who work more than 40 hours per week are entitled to compensation at time and one- McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 112

113 half. Under the FLSA, a municipality can designate a work cycle for fire and police departments utilizing the 7k exemption component for relief of overtime. The FLSA allows the municipality the ability to designate a work cycle from 7 to 28 days (see table below). Each cycle has an associated number of hours that the employee is allowed to work before the payment of overtime. Hours actually worked over the allowable amount under the law must be paid at one and one-half the normal rate. The following is the FLSA 7k exemption chart for fire departments. Table 27: FLSA Table for Fire Departments Cycle Hours Allowed Hours Worked FLSA Overtime Cycle = number of days needed to work before overtime becomes available Once the FLSA cycle is determined, the FLSA requires that overtime be paid for hours worked beyond the established number. Thus, in a 28-day cycle, overtime would be paid for hours worked beyond 212 hours. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 113

114 Hours Worked vs. Hours Paid There needs to be a distinction between hours worked and hours paid. The FLSA only requires that overtime be paid for actual hours worked. For example, in a 28-day cycle; if the employee were to take a day off during the 28-day cycle, these hours would not count toward the accumulation of overtime. He/she would be paid for their vacation time, but not at an overtime rate. As an example: An employee is scheduled to work 224 hours. During the cycle, the employee is granted and takes a 24-hour vacation day, and covers 12 hours for another employee. Here is how overtime is calculated: Table 28: FLSA Example 1 - No Overtime Earned Example 1 Hours Comments FLSA Cycle Hours 224 Vacation Time -12 Hours Worked 200 Covered On Different Shift 12 Cover for another employee Total Hours Worked 212 No Overtime Accumulated Vacation Pay 24 Vacation Pay Total Hours Paid 236 Straight Time Table 29: FLSA Example 2 - Overtime Earned Example 2 Hours Comments FLSA Cycle Hours 224 Additional Shift Coverage 12 Total Hours Worked 236 Straight Time 212 Straight Time OT (1.5) 24 Overtime The current practice in Shelbyville is to treat all time off benefits personal, vacation, and sick as hours worked. In addition, any time worked past the individual s tour of duty is also eligible for overtime. For a traditional 40-hour per week employee, overtime, is determined by taking the annual salary and dividing it by 2,080 hours (the number of hours a 40-hour per week individual works). However, a traditional 24/48 work schedule works 2,912 hours per year; thus, overtime should be calculated by taking the annual salary and dividing it by 2,912. This will be further discussed. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 114

115 Many organizations, including Shelbyville, pay employees biweekly. With that said, when a department utilizes a 28-day cycle, overtime is to be paid on the payroll following the 28-day period. This is often challenging to payroll department as one payroll will be a regular pay (without overtime) whereas the second payroll will include any overtime. Before discussing FLSA in relation to the Shelbyville Fire Department and contract, one must have an understanding of Kelly days. Kelly Days Kelly days, a term utilized in the fire service for days off taken to minimize overtime, are used in some fire departments to help offset the work schedule and the cost of overtime. Employees are provided a specific day off (without pay) within the work cycle in order to either reduce or eliminate overtime. The day off is determined by administration, and is a day without pay during the week in which overtime is at its greatest. In Shelbyville, one Kelly Day is provided to each employee within every 10 shifts days. Working a 24/48 schedule, the work cycle varies between 240 hours (one shift) and 216 hours (two shifts) in the 28-day period. The Kelly Day concept was invented to have employees take an unpaid day off within the pay period that contains the 240 hours; thus, reducing overtime in that pay period. The yearly work schedule should include the designated Kelly Day per work cycle. It should be a day that aligns with the greatest amount of days within the cycle. Further, employees should not be allowed, unless in extreme circumstances, to work the Kelly Day. Then it becomes just another day off not a day to alleviate overtime costs. Sleep Time The Fair Labor Standards act provides municipalities an exemption from paying for sleep time of fire personnel. There are two sections of the Fair Labor Standards Act that define the qualifications for sleep exemption: Sleep Time and Duty of 24 Hours or more. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 115

116 Section A of defines where an employee is required to be on duty for 24 hours or more the employer and the employee may agree to exclude bona fide meal periods and a bona fide regularly scheduled sleeping period of not more than 8 hours from hours worked, provided adequate sleeping facilities are furnished by the employer and the employee can usually enjoy an uninterrupted night s sleep. If sleeping is of more than 8 hours, only 8 hours will be credited. If the sleeping period is interrupted by a call, the interruption must be counted as hours worked. If the period is interrupted to such an extent that the employee cannot get a reasonable night s sleep, the entire period must be counted. For enforcement purposes, departments have adopted the rule that if the employee cannot get at least 5 hours of sleep during the scheduled period, the entire time is working time. (See Eustice v. Federal Cartridge Crop. 66F. Supp. 55 (D. Minn. 1946)). Many organizations feel they cannot comply with these provisions as they are busy departments; however, there are a number of organizations one in which utilizes this concept that receives 30,000 annual calls for service that exercise this provision. The employee is scheduled to work hours and is paid for hours. When a station responds to a call, that time becomes work time and counted as hours worked. Also, departments that utilize this provision regularly conduct audits to ensure that a majority of the time the sleep is uninterrupted. The consultant suggests the City consider this provision if they begin to have fiscally challenged budgets. The reduction in overtime costs is significant and could be applied to base wages. FLSA Shelbyville There are three areas that need to be discussed with the Shelbyville Fire Department and the Fair Labor Standards Act: Calculation of overtime Payment of overtime Use of Kelly Days McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 116

117 As stated, the City of Shelbyville pays employees bi-weekly. The Fire Department is on a 28- day overtime cycle; thus, overtime should be paid only upon completion of 28 days. Within the 28-day cycle, the Fire Department automatically pays each pay period 2 hours of overtime. The rationale is that within a 28-day cycle an employee works 240 hours a 24 hour unpaid Kelly Day = 216 hours worked. Within the 28-day cycle, an employee must be paid overtime for all hours worked over 212 thus, 2 hours of overtime. There are a number of problems with this calculation. First, within a 28-day cycle, an employee works one cycle of 10 days; as well as 9 days within the 28 day cycle. Unfortunately a 28-day cycle and a 30/31 day calendar do not align well. If the department were calculating overtime correctly with the one unpaid Kelly day, then the 10 day cycle would be working 216 hours (and be eligible for 4 hours of overtime) and the 9 day cycle would only be working 192 hours and would need to work 20 more hours before eligible for overtime. Next, the Fire Department is paying overtime bi-weekly, not at the end of the 28-day cycle. Combine this with the automatic 2 hours of overtime paid per pay period; or 4 hours per month; the City is overpaying the employee. (Keep in mind the 9 day work cycle only works 192 hours and overtime is not payable until 212 hours worked). Added to this is that the Fire Department some years ago, felt it needed parity with the police department in how overtime was calculated. Recall that a 40hour per week employee earns overtime after working 40 hours within a defined work week. Thus, a regular employee works 2,080 hours per year and overtime is calculated using the annual salary divided by 2,080 hours. Fire personnel work 2,912 hours per year and therefore, overtime should be calculated by taking the annual salary and divide by 2,912 hours. The Shelbyville contract has firefighter overtime being paid at the 40 hour rate. The result is an overpayment of overtime as shown in the following table: Table 30: Overtime Calculation Rank Base Salary Hours per Hourly Time & year Rate Half Rate FF/EMT 1 st yr. $44, $15.16 $22.74 $44, $21.22 $31.83 FF/Rotational Medic $52, $17.98 $26.97 McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 117

118 $52, $25.17 $37.75 The additional overtime is $9.09 per hour worked for FF/EMT and $10.79 for a FF/Rotational Paramedic. With the current practice of 2 hours of automatic overtime per pay period, multiplied by the number of FF/EMT and FF/Rotational Paramedic, the City is spending approximately $24,700 a year in unearned overtime. The overtime example does not include any of the specialty pays provided for within the contract nor include all employees eligible for overtime. According to the Fire Chief, the specialty pay is added to the base wage and divided by 26 pay periods. Thus, it is used in the calculation of overtime. In the last contract negotiations, the City and Union agreed that employees could sell back some of the Kelly Days for dollars added to the base salaries. This limited the number of Kelly Days an employee could work. Under policy (not stated in the contract) an employee is allowed to work the assigned Kelly Day. It is interesting to note how one can sell back an unpaid day; further, as payroll notes, individuals are still working their assigned Kelly Day so any potential savings is negated by the increase in overtime especially since overtime is at a premium rate. In order to illustrate the cost of the Kelly Days it is important to understand that every member of the Fire Department receives a 24-hour shift referred to as a Kelly Day off for every 28 day FLSA cycle. There are about day cycles per year. So in essence the following table illustrates the number of Kelly Days provided to the Fire Department members on an annual basis: Table 31: Number of Kelly Days Provided Annually Fire Department Members Number 28 day Cycles Annually Number of Kelly Days each FD member Kelly earns each year Total Number Kelly Days Annually The reality is that there is no requirement to provide every member with a 24-hour Kelly Day every 28 day cycle as discussed in this section. If the Fire Department were to follow what is McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 118

119 required to meet the requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act for paying overtime it would save the taxpayers a significant amount of dollars. The average number of days each firefighter is scheduled to work on an annual basis is either 121 or 122 days. The total number of 741 Kelly Days provided annually equals the number of days six full-time firefighters would be scheduled to work each year. So the reality is that the Fire Department practice of providing these Kelly Days without being required is the equivalent of an additional six firefighters on the Fire Department. Another way to view it would be an additional two firefighters assigned to each 24 hour shift. This type of additional personnel could provide the staffing for a third ambulance to be in service. The Fire Chief informed the consultants that on each 24-hour work day the Fire Department had two members off on Kelly Days. If two members are off each day there are numerous days the required number of fire department personnel required on duty drops below the minimum number required of 14 personnel. In 2014, there were at least 100 days when less than 14 personnel were on duty and this would have required overtime payment to bring the number of on duty personnel up to the minimum number of 14. The cost of overtime is very expensive since overtime is paid not at the 2912 hour annual schedule of a firefighter, but it is paid at the annual hourly rate of someone that works 40 hours per week or 2080 hours annually. So based on the current contract language everyone on the Fire Department that is part of the union instead of receiving 1.5 times their hourly wage for overtime receive 1.88 times their hourly salary because overtime is premium pay which is based on the 40 hour work week hourly rate. The hourly rate for Fire Department members ranges from about $17.72 per hour to $27.57 per hour. The hourly rate for overtime at the premium rate for the same personnel ranges from $33.33 per hour to $51.84 per hour. So a 24 hour shift of overtime can range from a cost of $ a day to $1, a day plus benefits. Administrators receive comp time instead of overtime, but there is still a cost to the City for comp time. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 119

120 If one were to just use the number of days overtime was required in 2014 which was 100 days the cost for the overtime would have ranged from about $80,000 to $124,416 plus benefits. Obviously the overtime costs are significant for the City of Shelbyville taxpayers. The consultants were not able to verify the accurate amount of overtime pay paid each year. This was primarily due to the fact some of the overtime wages are budgeted in the salary accounts and not in separate overtime accounts. The Fire Department did provide some documentation that in 2013 the Fire Department spent $235, and in 2014 the Fire Department spent $243, in overtime. With the change in the minimum staffing being increased from 13 personnel on duty to 14 personnel on duty it can be expected that the annual costs of overtime will increase a significant amount. Averaging Pay Days Shelbyville compensates fire personnel based upon the assumption that they work an average of 240 hours per cycle. In addition, when FLSA was instituted in 1985, many departments had difficulty interpreting the law. Thus was the case in Shelbyville, as a biweekly overtime payment of four (4) hours per month is given to all shift personnel in order to compensate for any overtime. Firefighters often negotiate level pay plans within their department, so they are paid as if they worked the same number of hours each pay period. However, firefighters do not always work 56 hours per week. In fact, firefighters who work 24-hours shifts will not work exactly 56 hours in a week. The assumption that a firefighter works an average number of hours per week will result in underpayment of overtime for some pay periods and overpayment for other periods. The Fair Labor Standards Act prohibits the averaging of FLSA overtime over work periods and the Department of Labor has specifically prohibited this practice regarding firefighters (29 C.F.R ). Therefore, pay for firefighters must be based upon the actual hours worked in the FLSA work period, not an average of the hours worked. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 120

121 Although such practice is prohibited, if the municipality averages pay, but then adjusts pay at each pay period adding extra hours, overtime worked; and subtracting hours not worked; the organization can average the salary over the calendar year. The payroll department pays only on the hours submitted by the Fire Department; therefore, the City is not following the Fair Labor Standards Act in proper payment of fire employees. The practice of average salary for an even pay check should cease immediately and the fire department should develop a comprehensive accounting of time actually worked, time in excess of 212 and the reason; deduct pay when the cycle equates to only 192 hours, etc. This payroll accounting should be submitted to payroll for review and calculation of pay. Payroll Processing In discussions with City personnel regarding payroll process, the Fire Department maintains its own records and only provides a summary of time off per employee. It is not uncommon to have someone from the Fire Department call in and change vacation days to sick days. This raises questions to the consultants as to the frequency of these changes and whether supervisory personnel within the Fire Department need training on payroll practices; and/or the policies associated with calling in and/or recording of time off. The consultants suggest that detailed time sheets be provided to the City payroll department to ensure accurate recording of time for employees. Recommendations -Fair Labor Standards Act Change the Kelly Day practice to ensure that the Kelly Day falls within the pay cycle of the longest work days. Employees should not be allowed to work the Kelly Day as it defeats the purpose. Priority 1 In the next negotiations change the calculation of overtime to the 2,912 rate. Any potential savings could be used on the base pay. Priority 2 Payroll should be based on the hours worked and time off within the 28 day cycle; not equally divided by the 26 pay periods. Priority 1 Detailed time sheets per employee should be submitted to the City payroll department for more accurate time reporting. Priority 2 Evaluate the FLSA provision of sleep time if and when the City s budget becomes fiscally challenging. Priority 5 McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 121

122 Contract Review The following is a brief review of the contract between the City of Shelbyville and the Shelbyville Professional Firefighters Association. The consultants understand that all suggestions require negotiations to change. The contact is currently negotiated between the firefighters and members of the City Council. It is strongly recommended that the Fire Chief, Human Resources Director and City Attorney (or labor attorney) comprise the City s negotiation team. This team can work with the City Council on establishing the parameters for negotiations, but Council members should not be a part of the team. The role of a City Council member is policy making not micromanaging the operations of the department. Further, it is necessary to have individuals at the table who are looking out for the City as a whole not just the interests of the Fire Department. Although reading contract language after the fact can be problematic as one does not understand the dynamics at play during the negotiations having individuals who are familiar with fire operations, city interests, and an understanding of what is happening in the labor market, will provide for a more balanced negotiations team. The following are the sections of the contact that have suggestions for change: Article 6: Hours of Work: The City s employee handbook indicates that overtime information for the Fire Department is contained within this section. Only Section E provides one sentence for the calculation of overtime. Either in this section, a section on overtime, or the sections for vacation and/or sick should indicate whether these days are used in the calculation of overtime. Section B provides for a $35 dollar compensation for call back. The consultant is unsure why this provision is in contract language. Returning to work due to a call back qualifies an individual for hourly compensation on most occasions at overtime. Since overtime is already being paid at a premium rate this provision should be eliminated. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 122

123 Section C indicates that the contract will comply with the Fair Labor Standards Act then the compilation of overtime and payment of overtime at the end of the 28-day cycle should be adhered to as it is in the contract. Section D Court Appearances should be in the City s employee handbook and not in contract language. Section F Compensatory Time there is a provision in this section that compensatory time earned above the $35.00 will be credited at a ratio of three (3) hours of compensatory time for every hour earned if the City cannot pay the overtime. The City should investigate when this provision was last utilized and see if it is still necessary. Use of compensatory time for leaves of absences, FMLA, medical leaves should be dictated by City policy and placed within the City s employee handbook. Section H Kelly Days is not correctly being applied and four (4) hours of overtime each work cycle are not being earned. This needs to be changed to comply with FLSA. Article 7 & 8 Assigned/Emergency Extra Duty: An interesting article where the employee who is on a Kelly Day is the first to be called back in the event of a shift shortage or emergency call-back. One questions the reason for a Kelly Day as it is not serving any purpose but providing an employee extra overtime during the work cycle. Most fire departments have a seniority list (sometimes by required skills) that is used in rotation for call-back types of responses. The individual at the top of the list is contacted first usually the one with the most seniority and if refused, he/she goes to the bottom of the list so that all get an opportunity. In other departments, a member of the fire department will monitor the list to ensure that overtime is spread among all members of the department. Article 10 Vacancies: It is unusual to find contract language as to the time frame to fill vacancies. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 123

124 Article 12 Base Salary; Article 15 Rank Pay: The department has a very interesting and complicated salary structure and with it, one can see why hiring is difficult. Rather than having a salary schedule for each rank, it is built on a combination of add-on and specialty pay. The distance between ranks firefighter, lieutenant, battalion and deputy chief is minimal and the consultants are sure that compression (salary plus overtime) is problematic. (Note: The consultants asked for a full fiscal year of salary plus overtime, but it was not produced). The consultants recommend a salary study to determine the average market rate of each rank, eliminate all of the add-on and specialty pays, and develop a salary structure that accounts for each rank, is market competitive, and has the appropriate distance between ranks. Eliminate the salary information for positions not covered by the bargaining agreement. The Fire Chief should not be considered a part of the bargaining unit. The unit clarification is not specific as to the ranks of Deputy Chief. Section A of the Rank Pay article requires the City to fill a rank pay or specialty pay position within thirty (30) days; however, the contract and the department s SOG manual do not provide any promotional process. During the interview with the Fire Chief, he indicated that there was a testing process in place. This language and a SOG on the promotion process should be coordinated so all employees know and understand the process and it aligns with contract language. Article 18 Education Pay: The contract provides for certification pay in addition to the extra pay received as part of the salary schedule. The consultants question the receipt of certification pay for certifications/licenses that are required for the position EMT, paramedic, etc. This pay should be integrated into the base pay of the rank. Education pay should be reserved for other activities required outside of the normal job responsibilities or for someone taking on extra responsibilities due to these responsibilities. Article 21 Disability Leave and Emergency Leave: The contract provides for a very lucrative disability pay in which an employee on a leave earns 100% of his/her salary for the first 90 days McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 124

125 (or 3 months) of leave. (Same benefit provided to all City employees). Would suggest tailoring this to something more in line with other municipal agencies and the private sector. Article 22 Holiday Pay: It should be noted that the Fire Department does not receive holiday pay; rather the contract provides for two (2) floating holidays. The consultant does not recommend any additional holidays until the FLSA and salary schedule are revamped. Article 26 Bereavement Leave: One must keep in mind when writing policies for organizations on a non-traditional work schedule the impact of the policy. The contract provides for three (3) working days off for the death of a spouse, parent, sibling or grandparent. For firefighters on a 24/48 schedule what would be three consecutive days for a 40-hour per week employee, can be seven (7) days off for a firefighter. Suggest reducing to two twenty four hour shifts or a total of four (4) days off. Article 27 Vacation: Suggest converting to hours rather than days easier to calculate and understand in a non-traditional hour department. Language either in the City s handbook or in the contract should specify that vacation time counts toward the calculation of overtime. Article 28 Sick Days: Current contract language allows for the accumulation of 35 days of sick leave. Once the maximum is reached, the firefighter can sell back unused sick leave at the firefighter s highest rate of pay. The City must make sure that per the CAFR regulations, all sick leave eligible for payout is placed on the city budget as a liability. It is suggested that the maximum be increased, and rather than a payout, the balance used to purchase health insurance (the balance not paid by the City) at the time of retirement through a health savings account vehicle. This provides for insurance at retirement, promotes individuals to save sick leave rather than use it, and assists the City is the liability accumulation. Language should be added in the City s handbook or in the contract that sick leave pay counts toward the calculation of overtime. As the City struggles to meet its budget, it may want to consider changing sick leave from hours worked to hours paid. Thus, an employee would receive sick leave pay, but the time off would not count toward the calculation of overtime. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 125

126 Unfortunately the City s payroll system does not allow a report to be run that could provide information to the consultant to calculate an average savings. In past departments, this change produced a minimum of $3,000 per employee in savings. These dollars could then be more effectively utilized in base salaries or other types of incentives and/or operation costs. Article 35 Retirement: Not sure why the type of retirement gift is a subject of negotiations. As with many contract, there is language that over time becomes outdated. Further, what made sense when it was negotiated 5, 10 or 15 years ago may no longer make sense now. It is helpful to periodically go through and clean up outdated language or language that is better situated in an SOG or the City s employee handbook. Recommendations - Union Contract The city needs to change the players at the negotiations table to include the Fire Chief, Human Resources Director and a labor (or City) attorney. Priority 3 Consider a number of the recommendations for changes in the contract to bring a more balanced employee and City contract. Priority 5 Age & Years of Service When it comes to recruitment and promotion activities, one needs to consider the make-up of the department s workforce. A younger department needs to concentrate on career development whereas an older workforce needs to concentrate on succession planning. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 126

127 Table 32: Years of Service Analysis <1 1 to to to 15 to 20 to 30> Number of FT Employees % of Department 1.6% 9.7% 22.6% 24.2% 14.5% 21.0% 6.5% Of the current workforce, 66% of the members have at least 10 years of service. This is not unusual in the public sector, especially in public safety where movement to other departments is restricted through contract language. What it does indicate is that complacency can seep into an organization as many have been there done that ; or if it isn t broken don t fix it. It becomes difficult for the fire chief and chief officers to motivate individuals to take on additional responsibilities, take on overtime assignments, and challenge the status quo; whereas it is an opportunity for an innovative department to explore new opportunities and greater efficiencies. Table 33: Age of Department Analysis <20 21 to to to to 60 >60 No of FT EE % of Dept 0.0% 14.5% 41.9% 25.8% 14.5% 3.2% McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 127

128 Fifty six percent of the department is less than 40 years of age. This would indicate that there will be little room for promotional growth as only 43% of the workforce or 27 employees will be eligible to retire within the next years, and of that number only two BCs and one LT. It then becomes challenging for the command staff to keep employees excited about professional growth as there is limited promotional opportunities. The Fire Department does not currently conduct performance evaluations. It is difficult to do evaluations when some see the exercise as futile as there is no correlation between performance and compensation. It is suggested that the Department consider developing a performance evaluation system that concentrates on meeting the goals of the Fire Department and professional development to keep a relatively younger workforce (age and tenure) energized. Recommendations - Age and Years of Service Develop a performance evaluation process that focuses on professional development opportunities. Priority 3 Within the next few years, consider instituting some succession planning so that employees are prepared for a promotion. Priority 3 Codify the promotional process so that the policy, contract, and job descriptions align. Priority 3 Update job descriptions to include supervisory skills, training, and experience required for the positions. A good employee does not automatically equate to a good supervisor. Training and experience should be required from the lieutenant on up. Priority 3 Recruitment An independent organization is responsible for many of the hiring activities. The consultants reviewed all of the documents in the recruitment packet and have the following suggestions: Application: o Remove social security number although not illegal, with the increase in identify theft, and the number of individuals who review the application; it should be removed. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 128

129 o Remove driver s license same as above. If both of these are needed for background checks, remove to a separate document that is maintained by the Fire Department Secretary or the testing company. o Consider adding a section under Skills & Qualifications that has a listing of the desired/required licenses and/or certifications. It is easier to check a box than guess what the department needs. The Human Resources Department should be kept apprised of the recruitment process and brought in when the department is considering final candidates. This provides an assessment from a city-wide perspective, rather than just the fire department. Further, it helps them prepare and not be taken by surprise when a new employee shows up on their doorstep. Recommendations - Recruitment Consider making a few changes in the employment application to reduce the possibility of identity theft of the candidates. Priority 4 Work to involve the City s Human Resource Department in the recruitment and personnel function of the Fire Department. Priority 3 City Handbook Review While meeting with the Human Resources Director, the consultants offered to evaluate the City s employee handbook. Appendix D contains this evaluation along with suggestions for updating. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 129

130 Facilities City of Shelbyville Fire Stations The City of Shelbyville Fire Department operates out of three fire stations. The consultants did visit all three fire stations during the study and conducted a walkthrough of each fire station with department personnel. Fire Station #1 is located at 40 West Broadway Street, Shelbyville, Indiana. Fire Station #1 was built in 2006 and is approximately 25,930 square feet on two floors. The first floor including the apparatus bay is about 14,375 square feet and the second floor is about 11,555 square feet. Fire Station #2 is located at 375 Progress Road, Shelbyville, Indiana. The one story station was built in 2012 and is approximately 11,555 square feet in size. Fire Station #3 is located at 1350 West McKay Road, Shelbyville, Indiana. The station was built in 1985 and is approximately 3,350 square feet in size. Fire Station #3 is rather unique in that it was constructed in the base of a water tower. Shelbyville Fire Station #1 Fire Station #1 is the headquarters fire station, which is where the Shelbyville fire administration is located. The station is located at 40 West Broadway St. in Shelbyville. The station was built in 2006 and has not had any additional alterations. The station is a two story noncombustible structure. The first floor is comprised of the apparatus floor with associated support function rooms. The Fire Department administration suite and training room are located on the first floor front of the building. The kitchen and one lounge are located on the first floor rear of the building. The remainder of the living quarters is located on the second floor. The following figure is a front view of fire station #1: McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 130

131 Figure 18: Station #1 - Headquarters The station is not Americans with Disabilities compliant as it does not have an elevator or lift for access to the second floor of the station. The facility is in excellent condition and maintained very well. The fire station does have an emergency generator available for emergency power requirements. The largest dimensions of the building are 132 feet x 132 feet. The exact size of the areas will be discussed later in this section. The station is sprinklered and has an alarm system however it is not monitored off site. The consultants were informed that under Indiana statutes the fire department is not required to have their systems monitored. The consultants recommend that the systems be monitored off site for their own protection. A number of fire stations have experienced fires every year and if the fire alarm system is not monitored the department could be looking at a potentially large loss. There are approximately 150 fires in fire stations annually in the United States of which 37% are the structure themselves and 44% are the apparatus (source: U.S. Fire Administration). The leading cause of fire station fires is electrical followed closely by cooking, often when crews respond to an emergency and forget to shut off the stove. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 131

132 Recommendation Fire Protection Systems Fire Station #1 and all new and existing fire stations be equipped with fire suppression (sprinklers) and fire alarm systems that are monitored by the PSAP. Priority 2 Station #1 Apparatus Bay Area The apparatus bay area is about 9,330 square feet in area. The apparatus bay area has three, double deep drive through bays and a fourth bay that is not a drive through bay. The following equipment is assigned to Station #1-- Engine #1, Aerial #1 ( Reserve), Medic #1, Medic #3, Truck #5 ( grass rig), Tactical squad( swift water rescue ), Squad #1, Squad #2, two boats and one trailer, station car, cars also assigned to Chief, Deputy Chief, EMS Chief and fire prevention. There are seven overhead bay doors with four located in the front of the station and three located in the rear of the station. All door sizes are 14 feet 4 inches in width and 14 feet in height. All apparatus bay doors are controlled by wall mounted switches and remote controls in the vehicle apparatus. The station is equipped with a Plymovent apparatus emission exhaust system for all apparatus to remove vehicle exhaust from the building. There is not any other means of ventilation off the truck floor and no air handling scrubbers to remove exhaust from small tool operations or operations involving mechanics working on equipment. This station has both an oxygen refill station and a station to refill the self-contained breathing apparatus. The fill stations are equipped with explosion resistant enclosures and meet standards however the air compressor used to fill the self-contained breathing apparatus is not piped to the outside to provide the intake air for compression. We offer the following OSHA standard taken from this OSHA technical manual as the reason for the need to install the intake piping. specifically referring to the section entitled Other Specific Requirements. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 132

133 The consultants understand that Station #1 is less than 10 years old, but the fire pole from the second floor to the apparatus bay floor by the battalion chief's office is a concern. The installation of fire poles in fire stations is not very common any longer and this is primarily due to the issue and concerns about safety. The safety issues are a concern due to the fact many injuries are the result of sliding down the fire poles. Recommendation Fire Pole Option #1 - Take the fire pole completely out of service by removing it and securing the hole on the second floor so it would not be possible for anyone to fall through the hole after the pole is removed. Priority 4 Option #2 - Take the fire pole out of service and secure the area around the hole in the second floor. Basically the fire pole could remain in place, but not used at all and the area around the fire pole and hole on the second floor would be secured so no one could fall through the hole. Priority 3 Option #3 - Continue using the fire pole but only with a continuous training program on the proper use of the fire pole and the methods for preventing injury. Priority 3 Station #1 Administration Area The Shelbyville administration area contains the following offices and area. There is a large well equipped training room with all the necessary teaching aids and equipment. The Chief s office, the Deputy Chiefs office, the EMS Chief s office, the office for fire prevention, the file room, copy/mail room and the Battalion Chief s office suite. The area also has two individual use restrooms without showers. The total area of the full first floor including the kitchen and lounge located behind the Administration area is 14,375 square feet. Station #1 Living Area The living area of the station on the first floor includes the kitchen, dining area, and lounge located in the rear of the first floor. This area on the first floor is about 1,025 square feet. The remainder of the living area is on the second floor. This second floor area includes the following: a physical fitness exercise room, one each large multiple use men s and women s restrooms with multiple individual showers, a lounge, a lounge area in the hallway, a laundry and McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 133

134 12 Dorm/Locker individual rooms with 3 Murphy beds in each. The total square footage on the second floor is about 8,390 square feet. Recommendations Fire Station #1 Station #1 should install a direct pipe to the outside of the building to supply intake air for the air compressor used to fill the self -contained breathing apparatus bottles. Priority 2 Station #2 should have their sprinkler and alarm system monitored by an off-site central alarm company. Priority 2 Shelbyville Fire Station #2 Fire Station #2 was built and occupied in 2012 and has had no alterations. Fire Station #2 is located at 375 Progress Road in Shelbyville. The station is a one story, noncombustible structure with three drive through bays. The fire station does have an emergency generator available for emergency power requirements. The station is new and still has the new station appearance. The total square footage of the station is about 11,555 square feet. The following figure is a front view of Fire Station #2: Figure 19: Shelbyville Fire Station #2 McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 134

135 The station is sprinklered and has an alarm system however it is not monitored off site. The consultants were informed that under Indiana statutes the fire department is not required to have their systems monitored. Station #2 Apparatus Bay Area The area of the apparatus floor area is 5,555 square feet; this includes the rooms along the south side of the floor with associated apparatus area functions. There are three full drive through bays with all six overhead doors measuring 14 feet wide and 16 feet high. All apparatus bay doors are controlled by wall mounted switches and remote controls in the vehicle apparatus. The apparatus normally assigned to this station are Medic #2, Ladder #2, Engine #4, and Boat #3 with a trailer. The station is equipped with a Plymovent apparatus emission exhaust system for all apparatus to remove vehicle exhaust from the building. There is not any other means of ventilation off the truck floor and no air handling scrubbers to remove exhaust from small tool operations or operations involving working on equipment. There is also a mezzanine above the rooms on the south side of the truck floor where there is a small amount of storage currently. There is a permanent stairwell to the area for access. Station #2 Living Area The living quarters are 6,000 square feet in area. The living quarters includes a large kitchen/ dining area, day room, one office, and space for a future office, 4 restrooms, a fitness room, and 8 single use dorm/locker rooms. Each dorm room has a close locker desk and a bed with three storage areas for linen storage when off duty. There are 4 individual bathrooms for the firefighter each with a shower. Recommendations Fire Station #2 Station #2 should have their sprinkler and alarm system monitored by an off-site central alarm company. Priority 2 McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 135

136 Shelbyville Fire Station #3 Station #3 is located at 1350 W. McKay Road and was constructed in the base of a municipal water tower. This building was constructed in The fire station does have an emergency generator available for emergency power requirements. The following figure is a front view of Fire Station #3: Figure 20: Shelbyville Fire Station #3 This station is located in the lower level of a municipal water tower with two levels. The ground level is the apparatus floor with one overhead door and the second level is the living quarters. Each level is 1, 675 square feet with a total square footage of the station at 3,550 square feet. This is a fairly small portion of the overall structure. This building is not Americans with Disabilities compliant and would require considerable work to bring it into conformity. The overall condition of the building is good and it appears to have been well maintained. The consultants however have concerns on the safety of the building. The first floor is primarily intended as storage for a motor vehicle with a considerable amount of diesel fuel on board. There is only one way to access the living quarters above the truck floor. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 136

137 The second floor living quarters has a single wood door protecting that floor from the single egress open stairwell on the second level. On the second level other than the one stairwell from the first floor there is a fire pole and two small windows. The windows do not appear to be big enough for an adult to fit through and the fire pole goes directly to the area of the engine on the ground floor. The consultants realize that the station is sprinklered, but sprinklers can be compromised with petroleum based fires and the sprinkler system is not monitored off premises with a central alarm company. This station is not equipped with a fire alarm system. It is doubtful that the City would allow any other occupancy and/or occupancy permit for a building with single access to the second floor in a similar situation. The consultants have previously stated their concerns with fire poles. Station #3 adds the danger a floor opening in a direct route for smoke and heat from a first floor occurrence to the second floor with only one means of egress. Station #3 Apparatus Bay Area The apparatus bay area is about 1,675 square feet and is roundish. The single overhead panel door for the station is 12 feet by 12 feet. It is operated by both wall mounted push button and a remote in the engine. The station is equipped with a Plymovent apparatus emission exhaust system for all apparatus to remove vehicle exhaust from the building. There is not any other means of ventilation off the truck floor and no air handling scrubbers to remove exhaust from small tool operations or operations involving working on equipment. Therefore any practice of checking tools and running them in the station should not be allowed. Station #3 Living Area The living area for this station is 1,675 square feet and covers the second level. The living area includes a small but effective kitchen with a dining area which transitions into the lounge. Located off the lounge area is a small office. There is a hallway that leads to a fairly large single bunk room with a number of Murphy beds that ring the outside of the room. There is a washroom off the bunkroom which is not Americans with Disabilities compliant. In the hallway McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 137

138 that goes from the lounge to the bunkroom there is a fire pole that is used occasionally. The stairwell connecting the first and second level is located off the lounge area on the second floor level. Recommendations Fire Station #3 Station #3 should have a fire alarm system installed. This system should include smoke and carbon monoxide detection. Priority 2 Station #3 should have their sprinkler and alarm system monitored by an off-site central alarm company. Priority 2 Station #3 should provide a secondary means of egress from the second floor in the event of an emergency. The door to the second floor stairwell should be two-hour rated and the hole between floors repaired. Priority 1 Emergency Management Building The City of Shelbyville and the County have a cooperative effort in place to maintain the old Fire Station #2 as an Emergency Management Facility. The Emergency Management Building is located at 715 East State Road 44, Shelbyville, Indiana. The city pays for the maintenance of the station through the Fire Department and the county pays the salaries and expenses of operating the facility. Most of the equipment is donated and maintained by the sponsors. The following figure is a front view of Emergency Management Building: McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 138

139 Figure 21: Shelbyville Emergency Management Building The facility is a one story ordinary construction building that was constructed in The building has had a number of minor renovations over the years, but no records were available. The building is very functional for the needs, but it is an older facility that does not have all of the amenities of a modern facility. The building is not Americans with Disabilities compliant. The facility houses two Shelbyville police Swat vehicles inside at the front of the apparatus floor and two trailers at the rear of the floor. There are three additional trailers stored outside in the rear parking lot. The trailers are used for the following purposes: 1) Mass Casualty trailer sponsored by in town hospital (capacity 75 patients) 2) Mobile incident command trailer with large radio capabilities 3) Red Cross shelter trailer with 150 cots, out of Indianapolis 4) Small incident command trailer for hospital group 5) Spill Recovery trailer LAPC funded by Shelbyville The station is equipped with a Plymovent apparatus emission exhaust system for two SWAT Team apparatus to remove vehicle exhaust from the building. The only area of concern is the explosives locker on the side of the floor used to store the flash bang grenades used by SWAT team. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 139

140 The living area is one story with a kitchenette, Director s office, washroom, foyer, and a larger single room with radios, chalk and white boards used as a secondary or back up Emergency Operating Center. The facility appears to meet the current needs, however if there is intended to be a prolonged use the facility should be brought up to Americans with Disabilities compliant; this should not be overly expensive. Response Time Mapping The consultants utilized a GIS computerized mapping program that displays drive times from each of the current three fire station located in the City of Shelbyville. The maps illustrate the distance which emergency vehicles can reach with a drive time of four minutes under normal roadway conditions and traffic from the existing fire stations. GIS Mapping Station #1 On the following map the color area illustrates a four-minute drive time from Fire Station #1 Figure 22: Four Minute Drive Time from Fire Station #1 Station #1 McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 140

141 GIS Mapping Station #2 On the following map the colored area illustrates a four-minute drive time from Fire Station #2 Figure 23: Four Minute Drive Time from Fire Station #2 Station #2 GIS Mapping Station #3 On the following map the colored area illustrates a four-minute drive time from Fire Station #3 McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 141

142 Figure 24: Four Minute Drive Time from Fire Station #3 Station #3 GIS Mapping Station #1 and Station #2 Overlap The following map illustrates overlap (in the gold highlighted portion) of the areas of the City of Shelbyville that can be reached in a four-minute drive time under normal road conditions from Fire Station #1 and Fire Station #2. The reddish/brown highlighted area is the remainder of the area that Station #1 can reach in a four-minute response time. The yellow highlighted portion is the remainder of the area Station #2 can reach in a four-minute response time. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 142

143 Figure 25: Station #1 and Station #2 - Four-Minute Drive Time Overlap Station #1 Station #2 GIS Mapping Station #1 and Station #3 Overlap The following map illustrates overlap (in the dark blue highlighted portion) of the areas of the City of Shelbyville that can be reached in a four-minute drive time under normal road conditions from Fire Station #1 and Fire Station #3. The reddish/brown highlighted area is the remainder of the area that Station #1 can reach in a four-minute response time. The blue highlighted portion is the remainder of the area Station #3 can reach in a four-minute response time. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 143

144 Figure 26: Station #1 and Station #3 - Four-Minute Drive Time Overlap Station #1 Station #3 GIS Mapping Station #2 and Station #3 Overlap The following map illustrates there is no overlap of the areas of the City of Shelbyville that can be reached in a four-minute drive time under normal road conditions from Fire Station #2 and Fire Station #3. The yellow highlighted portion is the remainder of the area Station #2 can reach in a four-minute response time. The blue highlighted area is the remainder of the area that Station #3 can reach in a four-minute response time. Figure 27: Station #2 and Station #3 - Four-Minute Drive Time Overlap McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 144

145 Station #3 Station #2 Current Fire Station Locations Fire Station #1, which is the headquarters station, is located in downtown Shelbyville and this is an excellent location. As shown in the figure above Station #1 and Station #2 have a significant area of overlap in their four minute drive times. It is apparent that when Station #2 was constructed it was not built in a location that would benefit response times. Station #2 was built too close to Station #1 and this is the reason for the large overlap area in the four minute response time. Station #2 was constructed very close to the eastern border of the City of Shelbyville. As shown in the figures above Station #1 and Station #3 have a significant area of overlap in their four-minute drive times. It is apparent that when Station #3 was constructed it was not built in a location that would benefit overall City response times. Station #3 was built too close to Station #1 and this is the reason for the large overlap area in the four minute response time. In addition, Station #3 was constructed very close to the western border of the City of Shelbyville. At the time that Station #3 was built the location was probably attractive as it was built into the City owned water tower; the consultants were told that the City could get grant money for a water tower but not money for a fire station. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 145

146 In addition to the location, Station #3 only has room in the apparatus bay area for one vehicle, which is Engine #3. If the station would have been constructed as a normal fire station there would have been room for at least one more vehicle, which probably would have been an ambulance. In fact if Station #3 had two bays and an ambulance was able to be located in the station the three-person crew at Station #3 then could have cross-staffed between the engine and the ambulance depending on the type of call they were responding to for an emergency. This would have allowed the current ambulance staffing problem to be resolved for a period of time. In essence, the City of Shelbyville Fire Department has three fire stations, but two of the three fire stations are not located in the best locations and the result is that response times are affected and there is significant overlap in station response districts for the four minute drive time measurement. Future Fire Station Needs The Fire Chief of the Shelbyville Fire Department believes that an additional fire station is required to serve the area of the City of Shelbyville near Interstate 74 and the Fairlane Road interchange. This is the area located near the Indiana Grand Racing and Casino complex. This area and other future development and growth within the City of Shelbyville will be discussed in another section in this report. The issue of where such a fire station would be located to best serve the area is an excellent question. Currently the time to respond to the area near the Indiana Grand Racing and Casino complex is 8 to 10 minutes, but the call volume is very low. The consultants will discuss two potential locations for the purposes of illustrating where a fourth fire station may be located. Future Site 1 Station #4 The following location is near the intersection of North Michigan Road and 400 North. This is near the Interstate 74 and Fairland Road interchange. Figure 28: Future Fire Station Site #1 McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 146

147 Future #4, Station #1 Green area represents a four-minute drive time, under normal traffic and weather conditions from a future Station #4 (the map will only color in areas in which there are existing roadways). The red area represents a four-minute drive time, under normal traffic and weather conditions from existing Station #1 Future Site 2 Fire Station #4 The following location is near the intersection of Bassett Road and North Riley Highway (Hwy 9). This location is near the site of the new hospital being constructed in the area. Figure 29: Future Fire Station Site #2 McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 147

148 Future #4 Station #1 Purple area represents a four-minute drive time, under normal traffic and weather conditions, from a future Station #4 (the map will only color in areas in which there are existing roadways). The red area represents a four-minute drive time, under normal traffic and weather conditions from existing Station #1. Either of these sites would help serve the areas of the city that are currently located beyond the four-minute drive time, but the areas are very limited in size. The issue with both of these potential sites is that the areas of the City of Shelbyville that they would serve are very limited and both sites are located on or near the border of the City. The majority of the areas each site could reach in a four-minute drive time are not located in the City. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 148

149 During a visit to Shelbyville the consultants used a GPS to measure the mileage and time between various locations in Shelbyville. The locations were primarily between Shelbyville Fire Stations and sites near the I-74 and Fairland Road interchange. The consultants also measured the distance between the Fairland FD and various locations since that fire station is the closest fire station to the area. Table 34: Mileage From and To Various Locations in Shelbyville Mileage From and To Various Locations in Shelbyville From To Mileage Time Station #3 Station #1 2.2 miles 4 minutes Station #3 Station #2 4.4 miles 9 minutes Station #1 Indiana National Guard Site 6.4 miles 9 minutes Station #1 Pilot Travel Center 5.8 Miles 7 minutes Station #1 Fairland FD 7.7 miles 9 minutes Station #1 Grand Casino 6.3 miles 9 minutes Fairland FD Grand Casino 3.0 miles 4 minutes Station #1 Penske Logistics 6.1 miles 8 minutes Fairland FD Penske Logistics 2.8 miles 3 minutes Fairland FD Shelbyville Airport 4.7 miles 8 minutes Station #1 Shelbyville Airport 5.1 miles 8 minutes Station #1 New Major Hospital 3.0 miles 5 minutes The Fire Chief provided the consultants with a PowerPoint document with the title Shelbyville FD Risk Assessment for our Northwest fire protection district. The document provided the consultants with a list of businesses located in the area, with square footage of the businesses, number of employees and visitors and other information regarding the hazards in these occupancies. The list of businesses included the following: McDonalds Pilot Travel Center Capital Industries American Finishing Indiana Grand Racing Indiana Grand Casino Quickway U.S. Express McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 149

150 Hagie Indiana National Guard Major Health Partners Shelbyville Municipal Airport The consultants appreciate the fact that the Chief provided us with this information, but the reality is that the history of emergency calls to these occupancies and to this area of the City of Shelbyville is very limited as shown below. The fact is the area where the Indiana Grand Racing and Casino and the other businesses are located is an isolated area away from the City of Shelbyville. The routes to drive from the City are very limited; either Michigan Road, Interstate 74 or the back roads using Bassett Road. The result is it is a very narrow stretch of area that would be served by a fire station located at either of the general areas selected in figures above for a future fire station. At the present time it would be very difficult to justify a fire station to serve the areas near the Indiana Grand Racing and Casino complex or the new hospital once it is completed for two reasons. The first reason has been stated above and that is the areas that would be served by a fire station in either location would be very limited at least in terms of the area within the City of Shelbyville. The second reason is the fact that the number of emergency calls within both areas has been a small percentage of the calls that the Shelbyville Fire Department responds to on an annual basis as shown in the following table: Table 35: Calls to Area near I-74 and Fairlane Road Indiana Grand Casino Calls to Area Near I74 and Fairlane Road Horse Pilot Penske American Track Travel Hagie Logistics Finishing Stables Center Horse Track Capital Industries Total McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 150

151 The calls over the five-year period ranged from one call every 1.88 days (2010) to one call every 2.96 days (2012). Over the five year period the City of Shelbyville Fire Department responded to this area for a total of 765 calls, which is an average of 153 annually or one call every 2.38 days. The calls in this area on an annual basis were not divided by fire and EMS calls, but the Fire Chief informed the consultants that in 2014 of the 125 calls in this area 121 calls were EMS calls and only four (4) calls were fire calls. Based on the number of emergency calls in this area over the past five years it would be very difficult to justify the construction and staffing of a fire station in this area at this time. The following table indicates the number of fire stations by percentages of U.S fire departments that participated in the NFPA Fire Service Survey from that serve a population between 10,000 to 24, 999. As the figure indicates the majority of fire departments that participated in the survey have one or two fire stations. Only a small percentage of the fire departments have three or four fire stations. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 151

152 Table 36: Percentage of U.S. Fire Departments with Number of Fire Stations Percentage of U.S Fire Departments With Population Protected No Stations 1 Station 2 Stations 3 Stations 4 or More Stations 10,000 to 24, % 45.1% 30.6% 13.5% 10.7% Source: NFPA Fire Service Survey Recommendation Fourth Fire Station The consultants are recommending that a new fire station not be constructed at this time to serve the Northwest area of the City, but as the area develops and as the number of emergency calls in this area increase, then the need for a fire station can be reevaluated. Priority 2 McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 152

153 Apparatus/Equipment City of Shelbyville Fire Department Apparatus The City of Shelbyville Fire Department currently operates three ambulances, three engines, two quints/aerial ladders, and a number of other vehicles. The department houses three boats and a boat trailer that are owned by Shelby County Sheriff's Department. The Fire Department does have a five-year capital equipment budget, which is updated annually. The five-year plan includes fire department vehicles. Current apparatus placement is shown in the following three tables representing each station: Table 37: Station #1 Apparatus Apparatus Type Manufacturer Year Mileage Hours Pump Tank Battalion Command Chev, 2500 HD ,903 NA NA NA Engine #1 Pumper Pierce/Enforcer ,366 6,548 1, Aerial #1 Quint/100 Ft Tower Sutphen ,864 2,102 1, Truck #5 Brush Truck Dodge NA Squad #1 Station Utility Vehicle Dodge ,624 NA NA NA Squad #2 Manpower/EMS Ford F NA NA NA Tactical Swift Water Rescue Southern 4600LP ,407 8,479 NA NA Squad School School Vehicle Dodge Dakota ,300 NA NA NA Medic #1 Ambulance Road Rescue , NA NA Ford F450 Medic #3 Ambulance Road Rescue , NA NA Ford F450 Car #1 Command/Chief Dodge Ram , NA NA Car #2 Command/Deputy Dodge Ram , NA NA Chief Car #3 Command/EMS Chief Ford Explorer ,967 NA NA NA Inspector Fire Prevention Ford Explorer ,480 NA NA NA Table 38: Station #2 Apparatus Apparatus Type Manufacturer Year Mileage Hours Pump Tank Engine #4 Pumper/Reserve KME/Renegade ,436 10,208 1, Quint #2 105 Ft Rear Mount Smeal ,110 4,524 1, Ladder Medic #2 Ambulance Road Rescue Ford F ,503 1,496 NA NA McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 153

154 Table 39: Station #3 Apparatus Apparatus Type Manufacturer Year Mileage Hours Pump Tank Engine 3 Pumper KME Renegade 1997 NA , Apparatus Ownership and Purchase Methods The three ambulances are not owned by City of Shelbyville Fire Department, but are leased under five-year lease purchase agreements. The consultants were informed that in the past when ambulances were leased for five years at the end of the lease the ambulances could be purchased for about $40,000 each and then they would use these purchased ambulances as trade in for new ambulances purchased under the same lease purchase arrangement. The consultants were told that of the current three ambulances only one ambulance was purchased under the $40,000 buyout at the end of the lease purchase period. The other two ambulances were purchased with the buyout number of $1.00 at the end of the lease purchase period. The Fire Chief stated he was going to make arrangements to have the ambulance that was purchased with a $40,000 buyout changed to the $1.00 buyout. The consultants questioned the need to lease ambulances, especially when the normal time in service for an ambulance is about seven years with another two to three years of reserve service expected. It basically assures that the Fire Department will receive new ambulances at the end of each lease purchase agreement period. The lease purchase programs for municipalities is in essence a loan for the purchase of the vehicles due to the fact the interest rates are usually low and the buyout cost at the end of the lease purchase period can be adjusted to meet the financial needs of the municipality. The Fire Chief informed the consultants that the decision was made to go with the $1.00 buyout figure as then the Fire Department could look at the option of keeping the ambulances at the end of the lease and use these vehicles to remount with a new chassis. Remounting of ambulance chassis has become an attractive method of replacing ambulances. It usually involves sending the ambulance back to the manufacturer or dealer who will then replace McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 154

155 the worn out chassis with a new and the modular box being updated with lighting, oxygen lines, electrical components, flooring, upholstery and paint as required. The end result is an ambulance that is just like brand new with significant cost savings to the Fire Department. If the Fire Department purchases the ambulances at the end of the lease purchase agreement for $1.00 the decision can be made at that time based on the condition of each vehicle as to whether a remount needs to be completed immediately or if the condition of the ambulance will allow the vehicle to remain in service for a few extra years before a remount is completed. Some of the consultants have had very successful experience with remounts and some fire departments have remounted a modular ambulance box on a new chassis multiple times. The major factor in deciding to use remount ambulances is the quality of the ambulances a fire department will remount. Fortunately for the Shelbyville Fire Department they have an excellent ambulance manufacturer product to use for remounts with the Road Rescue ambulances. The Shelbyville Fire Department does own all of the other vehicles in the fleet with the exception Aerial Ladder 2, which is the 2008 Smeal 105 foot rear mount aerial ladder. This vehicle was purchased using the municipal lease purchase program with the $1.00 buyout at the end of the lease. The lease has about four more years of payments at just about $82,000 per year as the amount was just refinanced at a lower interest rate for the remainder of the original 10 year lease purchase. The consultants were informed on the first site visit that two new pumpers had just been ordered from Smeal Fire Apparatus with expected delivery of both vehicles in September When the two new pumpers are delivered and placed in service they will replace the current Engine #1 and Engine #3. The current Engine 1 the 2005 Pierce will become Engine 4 and will be a reserve engine. The two new engines have been purchased under a municipal lease program. The total purchase price is about $500,000 for each engine for a total of about $1 million. The City of Shelbyville made a down payment of $200,000 on a ten-year lease purchase agreement with the final buyout McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 155

156 of both engines at the end of the ten years at a cost of $1.00 each. The down payment of $200,000 was paid from TIF funds and the balance of the lease purchase payments will be paid from Racino funds, which are funds the City receives on an annual basis from the Indiana Grand Racing Casino for city services. It should be noted that in 2013 the Fire Department purchased five other vehicles in addition to the three ambulances. Four of the vehicles purchased were command staff vehicles and one was the Dodge Brush Truck. All five vehicles, with the exception of the EMS Chief s vehicle, were purchased with Racino Funds. The EMS Chief vehicle was purchased with funds that are being paid through the Ambulance Service Budget over a period of five years. Recommendation Fire Apparatus Ownership As long as the City Financial Consultant approves of purchasing fire department apparatus through the municipal lease purchase program with the buyout at the end of the lease at a cost of $1.00, it should be continued. Priority 3 Apparatus Maintenance All the department apparatus and equipment is maintained by three firefighter mechanics in house. All three of the firefighter mechanics are full-time members of the Fire Department that perform the mechanic duties as extra duties and they are compensated for these duties. The chief mechanic is a certified Emergency Vehicle Technician (EVT) and the other two mechanics are working on achieving the EVT certification. The three mechanics perform preventive maintenance on the vehicles as well as make minor repairs. The major repairs are completed by outside companies and during one of the visits by the consultants one of the engines that is being replaced was placed out of service for mechanical repairs and was towed to an outside vendor for repairs. Most of the vehicle work is accomplished in the vehicle maintenance bay at Fire Station #1. The Fire Department does not utilize any mechanics from the City of Shelbyville Streets Department at this time. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 156

157 Recommendation Fire Apparatus Maintenance Organize a cooperative effort for the City mechanics and Fire Department mechanic to aid one another in a time of need under the lead of the respective lead mechanic. Priority 4 The Fire Department does maintain a moderate supply of parts primarily preventative maintenance supplies with a known need on quantity such as filters, hoses, and lamps. The mechanics stated that there was no problem getting any needed parts or related services needed in a timely manner within the area. The Fire Department purchases fuel from a local company that has 24 hour/7 days a week fuel pump service. In addition, if fuel was needed at the scene of an emergency the fuel supplier would bring fuel to the scene. The documentation of vehicle repairs and preventive maintenance has been a problem for the Fire Department. The chief mechanic has been in the position for a short time, but understands the need for documentation of vehicles repairs and maintenance. Currently the Fire Department is using the Firehouse software program for recording vehicle maintenance, but they stated they are experiencing problems with the Firehouse software. The mechanics are looking at the possibility of finding an out of the box computer program for EVT fire department use with technical support or if obtaining a fleet computer program with technical support would be the best option for them. The mechanics do the yearly pump testing in house with complete records, however there is still work to be done to incorporate the testing and apparatus mechanical documentation cohesively. The ladder and ground ladder testing is completed annually by Consolidated Fleet Services, Inc. P.O. Box 8238 Searcy, AR (866) The same applies here as to documentation. Recommendations Fire Apparatus Records Records should be maintained for all vehicle preventive maintenance and repairs. Priority 4 Records should be maintained for all annual pump testing and aerial ladder and ladder testing. Priority 2 McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 157

158 Apparatus Condition Most of the apparatus are in good condition and appear to have the equipment to satisfy both the NFPA Standard 1901 on Fire Department Apparatus and also the Insurance Service Office 2013 Fire Suppression Rating Schedule. All the equipment appears to be in good operational condition. One notable exception is there is a 4 bottle portable refill station located on the tactical squad, but the unit does not have an approved mobile filling station. Extrication equipment with some cribbing is located on Engine 1, Engine 2 and Ladder 2. The extrication equipment includes cutters, spreaders and rams. There is also a set of air bags located on Engine #1. The two new engines that will be delivered in fall 2015 will both have a new set of extrication tools. Odometers vs. Engine Hour Meters An hour meter is a gauge or instrument that tracks and records overall elapsed time that the engine is actually running and is normally displayed in hours and tenths of hours. The table Apparatus/Vehicle Inventory lists the apparatus/vehicles that have both odometers and engine hour meters. The majority of hour meters are used to log running time of equipment to assure proper maintenance of expensive machines or systems. This maintenance typically involves replacing, changing or checking parts, belts, filters, oil, lubrication or running condition in engines, motors, blowers, and fans, to name a few. Fire trucks, ambulances, and police cars may all have significantly higher running times compared to mileage. Fire trucks can be running for hours at the scene without clocking a single mile. The same is true with ambulances whose on-scene idle time might be less than a fire engine but occurs more frequently. If maintenance is performed on these vehicles based on odometer readings only, engine life may be affected. Maintenance personnel understand the wear issues surrounding a vehicle s engine hour time compared to road miles; and therefore McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 158

159 Board members should not base replacement needs on apparatus/vehicle appearance and mileage but take into account all factors including engine hours. Apparatus Replacement Schedule NFPA 1901 Standard for Automotive Fire Apparatus sets the standard for new fire apparatus used in any aspect of fire protection. Although at one time there was discussion of a standard of life for apparatus, the efforts were abandoned because of the diversity of apparatus usage throughout the country. However, the standard does address the need to replace or renovate any apparatus that was built prior to the NFPA 1901 apparatus standards or manufactured prior to Apparatus life expectancy varies greatly based upon usage, preventive maintenance, environmental factors, and the community s ability to generate replacement funds. Another significant factor in equipment replacement is the rapidly changing technology, much of which is directly related to firefighter safety. Therefore, apparatus technology becomes a factor when considering replacement. Schedule for Fire Department Apparatus Replacement(s) The department does have a five-year capital equipment plan, and a number of vehicles are included on the plan for future years as indicated in the table below: Table 40: Fire Department Five-Year Replacement Plan Apparatus Type Manufacturer Year Shelbyville FD Consultants Replace Year Replacement Battalion Command Chevrolet, HD Engine#1 Pumper Pierce/Enforcer 2005 Replacement On Order then Reserve Status 2030 (New 2015 Engine) Aerial #1, Reserve Quint/100 Ft Tower Sutphen Remove from Fleet when no longer serviceable Truck #5 Brush Truck Dodge As Needed As Needed Squad #1 Station Utility Vehicle Dodge McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 159

160 Squad #2 Manpower/EMS Ford F No Date Listed Remove from FD Fleet Tactical Swift Water Rescue Southern 1991 Requesting Squad 4600LP year Lease School School Vehicle Dodge Dakota 2001 No Date Listed Remove from FD Fleet Medic #1 Ambulance Ford F Year Lease 2020 Medic #3 Ambulance/Reserve Ford F Year Lease 2020 Car #1 Command/Chief Dodge Ram Car #2 Command/Deputy Dodge Ram Chief 1500 Car #3 Command/EMS Ford Explorer Chief Inspector Fire Prevention Ford Explorer Medic #2 Ambulance Ford F Year Lease 2020 Ladder #2 105 Ft Rear Mount Smeal Quint Engine #4 Pumper/Reserve KME/Renegade 1992 Reserve 2023 Update with Engine 1 Engine #3 Pumper KME Renegade 1997 Replacement On Order 2030 (New 2015 Engine) Note: Engine #4 will be the 2005 Pierce Pumper when new engines are delivered in fall 2015 The City of Shelbyville and the Fire Department are planning for the replacement and purchase of fire department apparatus. The consultants have a number of recommendations in regards to the above five-year capital equipment purchase plan in regard to fire department apparatus and vehicles that are listed in the above table. The consultants recommend the following apparatus replacement schedule; however, following the general schedule are specific replacement recommendations. Table 41: Years of Service for Fire Department Vehicles Years of Service for Fire Department Vehicles Type of Apparatus Recommended In Service Years Engine/Pumper 15 years + 3 years Reserve Aerial/Tower/Quint 20 years + Reserve Ambulance 7 years years Reserve Auxiliary Vehicles As Needed Cars/Pickups/SUV's 10 years McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 160

161 The following table indicates the number of pumper apparatus possessed by fire departments within the United States, according to the NFPA Fire Service Survey, in communities protecting a population from 10,000 to 24,999. Table 42: Number of Pumper Apparatus in Communities with Populations 10,000 to 24,999 Percentage of U.S Fire Departments With Population No Pumper 1 Pumper 2 Pumpers 3-4 Pumpers 5 or More Pumpers Protected 10,000 to 24, % 8.4% 32.0% 48.6% 10.2% Source: NFPA Fire Service Survey The following table indicates the number of aerial apparatus possessed by fire departments within the United States, according to the NFA Fire Service Survey, in communities protecting a population from 10,000 to 24,999. Table 43: Number of Aerial Apparatus in Communities with Populations 10,000 to 24,999 Percentage of U.S Fire Departments With Population Protected No Aerial Apparatus 1 Aerial Apparatus 2 Aerial Apparatus 3-4 Aerial Apparatus 5 or More Aerial Apparatus 10,000 to 24, % 47.2% 3.2% 0.2% 0.0% Source: NFPA Fire Service Survey It should be noted that only 3.2% of the fire departments serving a population between 10,000 and 24, 999 in the United States that responded to the NPFA survey had two aerial ladder apparatus. It should be noted that Ladder #1 is a 1993 Sutphen with about 19,864 miles and 2,102 hours on the vehicle, but Ladder #2 is a 2008 Smeal with about 46,110 miles and 4,524 hours on it. It appears the Ladder #2 has over twice the amount of miles and operating hours because it has been used as the primary response vehicle responding from Fire Station #2 to fire calls and to EMS calls with Medic #2. It appears that the reason Ladder #2 has been used as the primary response vehicle from Station #2 is because Engine 4, a 1992 KMS pumper, was a reserve vehicle that has about 64,436 miles on the vehicle. Once the two new engines are delivered in fall 2015, the current Engine 1, a 2005 Pierce with 71,366 miles, will become Engine 4. Strong consideration should be given to operating Engine 4 McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 161

162 out of Fire Station #2 as the primary fire response vehicle, except for target hazard occupancies. This is known as cross-staffing vehicles and it is common in many fire departments the size of Shelbyville. This would allow a longer service life expectancy for Ladder #2 by using Engine #4 to respond to primary calls. A smaller vehicle, Engine #4, would also respond to EMS calls with Medic #2 instead of dispatching Ladder #2 on EMS calls, which are the majority of calls for the Shelbyville Fire Department. Recommendations Fire Apparatus Once the two new engines are delivered in fall 2015, the current Engine 1, a 2005 Pierce, will become Engine 4. Strong consideration should be given to operating Engine 4 out of Fire Station #2 as the primary fire response vehicle, except for target hazard occupancies. This is known as cross-staffing vehicles and it is common in many fire departments the size of Shelbyville. Priority 2 When the time comes to replace Ladder #2 it should not be maintained in the fleet as a reserve aerial ladder as we are recommending that only one aerial ladder be maintained permanently. Priority 3 The need to permanently maintain two aerial ladder apparatus in the City of Shelbyville fleet is not necessary based on the size of the community. We are not recommending taking the 1993 Sutphen Ladder #1 out of the fleet inventory at this time, but if it becomes a major problem due to maintenance costs then it should be removed from the fleet. Priority 2 The City and Fire department should consider the possibility of remounting the three ambulances on new chassis when the vehicles are due for replacement. The costs savings would benefit the city and the taxpayers. With the buyout at the end of the five-year lease purchase there is a strong possibility the ambulances could be used for another couple of years before remounting is completed. Priority 2 When the lease purchase agreements end on the current ambulances the City and Fire Department should purchase a new ambulance on a lease purchase. With the current three ambulances being purchased and eventually remounted there would then be four ambulances in the fleet. If the goal of the city and the department is to have three ambulances in service, it will be necessary to have four ambulances in the fleet. Priority 2 McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 162

163 Sufficiency of Apparatus Sufficiency of apparatus can be considered in two divergent ways: the amount of apparatus and its capability. The consultants have observed fire departments that have an abundance of apparatus, often resulting in apparatus that is rarely, if ever, deployed; or, more apparatus than the department is able to staff. In other instances, departments are under-equipped and/or the apparatus is lacking the tools required to perform tasks on the emergency scene. Water tenders have an important part to play in the operations of the Shelbyville Fire Department operations. Not only are the tenders needed occasionally in the three Townships protected by the department, but may also relied on in severe fires in the city to supplement the water supply. The consultants have been told that the Fire Department administration and department as a whole feel very comfortable with using the surrounding departments inventory of tenders for the job. They believe that there is good training and interoperability with a very successful history of past operations. This provides for a cost-effective way to provide needed capabilities but also helps with some additional staffing at the scene. Not including the three new ambulances that were new in 2013, there were five other fire department vehicles that were new to the Fire Department fleet in Purchasing this many new vehicles in one year becomes a future problem if they all need to be replaced again in the same future year. The Fire Chief informed the consultants that the reason so many vehicles were replaced in one year was because the Fire Department had gone without replacing vehicles and equipment for a number of years. The Fire Department vehicle replacement plan needs to be updated on an annual basis and communicated with the Mayor, Public Works and Safety Committee and the City Council so planning and budgeting for the future purchases can be accomplished. The number of fire department apparatus and vehicles is more than most departments the size of Shelbyville has in its inventory. We are recommending that Squad #2 a 1999 model which is the Manpower/EMS vehicle and the 2001 model School station car both be removed from the Fire Department fleet. It appears these vehicles were in the Fire Department fleet and when they were replaced with new vehicles and the Fire Department just maintained them in the fleet and McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 163

164 designated their purpose differently. This usually results in a fire department then needing to replace these vehicles at some point due to their age and maintenance issues. The Fire Department stated that Squad #2 is used for snowplowing the fire stations, but the consultants do not believe it is necessary for emergency response activities. Recommendations Fire Apparatus Fleet Size We are recommending that Squad #2, a 1999 model which is the Manpower/EMS vehicle and the 2001 model School station car both be removed from the Fire Department fleet. It appears these vehicles were in the Fire Department fleet: when they were replaced with new vehicles and the Fire Department just maintained them in the fleet and redesigned their purpose. Priority 5 The Fire Department vehicle replacement plan needs to be updated on an annual basis and communicated with the Mayor, Public Works and Safety Committee and the City Council so planning and budgeting for the future purchases can be accomplished. Priority 3 McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 164

165 Training Firefighting and Emergency Medical Services are carefully coordinated operations in which a great many people participate. Firefighters and EMS personnel perform to the level they are trained, typically under times of extreme danger and stress. The statement How you train is how you will perform on the emergency scene during an emergency describes the need for the Shelbyville Fire Department to have in a place a comprehensive training program that meets the needs of the community. Failure to train all personnel, to the levels of service demanded by the community can result in exposure to dangerous situations by those providing as well as receiving those services. The single most important aspect of any training program is safety both for the giver and the receiver. The Training Division and the Training Officer are essential to the fire department operation. It is within the training division that the foundation for each and every new firefighter, EMT, and paramedic is created. It then becomes the never-ending mission of the training division to maintain those skills learned by the new firefighter, EMT, and paramedic during basic training, certification courses and classes that present new subject matter that addresses evolving hazards and current trends as well as the use of new tools and equipment. Shelbyville Training Overview The consultants performed a review of the department s training program that included the review of training policies, goals, schedules, training and certification records, training library, training facilities and the ISO Summary Report prepared by ISO, dated January 30, The consultants have discovered there are numerous opportunities to improve the SFD training program. The responsibility for developing and delivering the SFD training program is given to the department s Deputy Chief. The Deputy Chief oversees the creation of annual training goals, and training calendar. There are two Training Officers assigned to each shift: one for fire topics, the other for EMS topics. Instructors are assigned to teach the respective classes based upon their areas of expertise. Each instructor creates a lesson plan, which might include a PowerPoint presentation and/or visual aids when appropriate, for the classes they will be McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 165

166 teaching. When the consultants asked to review examples of lesson plans and PowerPoint presentations, they were told that that material is not retained in a central location and remain with the individual who created the lesson. The challenge for any Training Officer is to assure that the training provided is current, interesting, and progressive. This must be done when delivering new information in addition to what is required by external mandates. It is important that the Training Officer, as well as the department instructors that deliver the training, provide the impetus to keep the members interested, motivated and possessing the desire of wanting to be trained. This can be accomplished when the Officer and the department instructors remain current in the latest trends in fire, EMS, and specialized rescue work, as well as demonstrating and maintaining their enthusiasm, knowledge and abilities. The SFD has a written standard operating guideline to address training. Safety and Health SOG 206 describes the purpose for training, identifies the department training policy and outlines responsibilities of both department members and department supervisors. Members are charged with maintaining the certifications they have earned and the supervisors must ensure that the members are in fact certified and that those members have sufficient skills to efficiently perform their duties. This process cannot be accomplished adequately by merely observing individuals during training. There must be an organized methodology to measure member s competencies and identify any weaknesses or unsafe practices, so remedial training can occur. Competencies vs. Training Hours Beyond the actual training program, today s fire service requires more than simply teaching members how to perform their jobs safely; it requires validation of their competency to do so. A well-constructed training program will employ a system to ensure all members receive required training and document core competencies (practical training evolutions) and it appears the current SFD Records Management System (ESO) has those capabilities, but apparently are not utilized. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 166

167 The topic of measuring competencies of department personnel continues to raise strong feelings from both those who manage the department and those department members who provide the actual service. Yet everyone seems to agree that the most important issue is safety of the emergency responders. Therefore, is it adequate for a chief to base the abilities of the emergency responder personnel on their certifications and monthly training records or attendance at drills, versus their actual ability to not only to perform the task, but also to do so in a safe manner? Discussion of competency testing often results in many jumping to the conclusion that if an individual lacks the skill associated with a particular task and cannot perform in a safe manner, there should be some type of punitive action. Quite the opposite should occur. Rather, remedial training should be given and documented, until such time the individual can perform the task safely and proficiently. Punitive action should occur if the individual refuses to correct the unsafe behavior. Recommendation Competency Testing The department should develop and implement training competency testing for all members to be conducted a minimum of semi-annually. Members showing deficiencies should receive remedial training. Priority 2 Competency testing should be observed by the Deputy Fire Chief and Safety Officer. Records of the testing should become part of the individual s training record. The evaluation should measure both knowledge and skills (routine evolutions) that each member is required to possess and maintain. Certifications The information provided to the consultants indicates that of the 60 sworn full-time line members, 51 are certified as Firefighter I and Firefighter II, respectively. There are 16 Officers, of which 14 are certified as both Fire Officer I and Fire Officer II, the remaining two senior fire officers do not hold any Fire Officer level certification. A total of 39 members, including 15 fire officers, have completed Fire Officer Strategy and Tactics certification. All SFD officers should be required to obtain and maintain Fire Officer Certification. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 167

168 Recommendation Officer Certifications All fire officers and those members that could fill-in for absent fire officers (acting officers), should be required to obtain and maintain as a minimum, certification as Fire Officer I, Fire Officer II and Fire Officer Strategy and Tactics. Priority 3 Seventeen (17) members have earned certification as Instructor I and three (3) as Instructor II/III. Although certified fire instructors may not be required in all cases, the quality of training provided by a certified fire instructor is expected to be of a higher quality. The SFD has a significant number of Fire Instructors (Level I) that possess the foundation necessary to deliver the department s training needs. Recommendation Instructor I Members that have the responsibility of delivering training classes should at minimum be certified as Fire Instructor I. Priority 3 Emergency Vehicle Driver Training The driving of emergency vehicles, especially under emergency conditions (lights and sirens) is a routine part of providing services. Even though driving emergency vehicles is a routine duty, driving department owned automobiles, SUVs, or small, medium and large trucks carries a high degree of liability; and is the second leading cause of death for firefighters and EMS personnel. There are 44 non-officer members of the department that hold the ranks of permanent FF, FF/EMT, FF/Paramedic, and/or FF/Rotational Medic. Of the 44 non-officers, 31 have received Driver Operator Pumper certification, 12 have received Driver Operator Aerial certification and three (3) are certified as EMS Emergency Vehicle Operators. In the unfortunate instance that an accident involving the SFD does occur, the department will have their driver training program and driver training records closely scrutinized. By including emergency vehicle driver training within the department s overall training program will not only reduce those events but provide documentation of the members driving training. The Indiana Firefighter Training System (IFSTS) provides fire service training courses to Indiana firefighters to facilitate their ability to meet national standards. Within the suite of courses offered are the 40-hour Driver / Operator Pumper course, and the 24 hour Driver / McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 168

169 Operator Aerial course. Both course and ultimate certification provides candidates with the knowledge and skills to meet minimum job performance requirements as outlined in NFPA 1002, Standard for Fire Apparatus Driver/Operator Professional Qualifications. Recommendation Drivers Certifications The consultants recommend that all members who drive and operate department pumpers, aerial devices, and EMS ambulances be required to obtain and maintain the respective driver s certifications throughout their employment. Priority 2 In addition, ISO requires all new driver/operators to receive 60 hours of training in accordance with NFPA 1002: Standard for Fire Fighter Professional Qualifications, edition In requiring SFD members to achieve Driver/Operator Pumper and Driver/Operator Aerial certification, candidates will have received 100% of the required training hours for new driver/operators; thereby satisfying the ISO requirements. National Incident Management System The SFD places strong emphasis on requiring their members to complete training courses in the National Incident Management System (NIMS). NIMS provides a uniform format that allows for federal, state, tribal, local governments, private sector, and nongovernmental organizations to work together before, during and after a significant incident, regardless of cause, size, location, or complexity. This consistency provides the foundation for nationwide use of NIMS for all incidents, ranging from daily occurrences to more complex incidents requiring a coordinated, multi-agency, multi-jurisdictional response. All 60 members of the SFD have completed NIMS Course 100, 56 have completed NIMS 200 and NIMS 700, and over 50 members have completed NIMS 1 st Responder Awareness and NIMS 1 st Responder Operations. SFD members have earned an extraordinary amount of certifications in multiple areas of fire and EMS disciplines. Upon review it is shown that some certifications have been earned by a single member or special rescue operations certification have been earned by approximately 33% of the members. It would be advantageous for the department leadership to identify those certifications that would benefit the department and categorize them as primary certifications which would be reimbursed; those not identified by the department would not be paid for by the City. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 169

170 Recommendation Identification of Certificates The department should establish certification goals and needs that best serve the needs of the SFD. The department s efforts should encourage members to seek these certifications which would be paid for by the City. Those not identified as primary certifications would not be paid for by the City. Priority 4 Training Risk Model Training is not the most important thing; it is the only thing. This well-known quotation in sports is very applicable to the fire/ems service. Well known speakers, such as Alan Brunacini and Gordon Graham, teach risk analysis models such as risk a lot to save a lot, risk little to save a little, risk nothing to save nothing ; high risk, low frequency, no time to think it through = DANGER which address the significance of training. Appling these training risk models, the high frequency, low risk would best describe the majority of EMS calls that represent 82.7% of the department s emergency responses (average three-year study period). Therefore, the remaining 17.3% of the emergency responses are fire by nature; fires could easily fall into the low frequency, high risk, and potentially no time to think it through. EMS training hours are dictated by the Project Medical Director who oversees the paramedic program for the department. The SFD fire training hours goals align with the ISO recently revisions of 16 hours per month plus 18 per year that must be conducted in a fire training facility, for a total of 210 mandated fire training hours (represents a decrease of 30 annual training hours per individual). Recommendation Training Hours The Deputy Chief should ensure that all members of the department meet the EMS required hours as dictated by the Project Medical Director, and meet the ISO newly established 210 hour of fire training per member annually. Priority 2 Training Data for Three-Year Study Period The data provided to the consultants listed each member s total training hours for the three-year study period. Their total training hours consisted of both EMS and fire training hours. The McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 170

171 consultants, to the best of their ability, removed Fire Chief, Deputy Fire Chief, EMS Chief, Fire Inspector, and Project Medical Director. In addition, any member who was inactive for greater than three months was removed so not to misrepresent the yearly training figures. The figures for each year and three-year summary are listed from the greatest number of hours obtained to the least number of hours obtained. The employees names have not been included in the figures nor are they in any alphabetical order Training Hours: Figure 30:2012 Members Training Hours 2014 Average for SFD members is 37.9% of the ISO standard McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 171

172 2013 Training Hours Figure 31: 2013 Members Training Hours 2013 Average for SFD members is 31.8% of the ISO standard 2014 Training Hours Figure 32: Members Training Hours 2014 Average for SFD members is 50.8% of the ISO standard McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 172

173 SFD Percent of ISO Required Training Hours/Year Table 44: SFD Percent of ISO Required Training Hours Year ISO % of Total % % %* Average 40.2% * 2014 ISO required hours dropped by 12.5% Training Calendar As previously noted training is coordinated by the SFD Deputy Fire Chief, but the fact is all Fire Department officers need to be responsible for training and need to be held accountable for this responsibility. The department was able to provide a comprehensive calendar for 2014 which listed mandatory training topics (see table below); topics aligned with dates, individual assigned to conduct training. Table 45: 2014 Mandated Training Topics Mandated Training Topics Hazard Communications Pump Ops Respiratory Protection Vehicle extrication Lock Out Tag Out Ventilation hazardous Materials Thermal Imaging Hazardous Materials Spill, Prevention and Control Documentation/Reporting Blood Borne Pathogens Driver/Operator Training Night Drills - 2 per year SCBA Fit Testing HIPPA Personal Protective Equipment Refresher Combustible & Flammable Liquids EMS SCBA Confidence Course Company Level Training Firefighter Survival Techniques Upon review of the annual training calendars the consultants found that there are no specific times of the day listed for the daily training sessions. It appears that each shift develops its own daily schedule, with training specifically, delivered at different times. Such a schedule or lack of a schedule makes it difficult or impossible for management to oversee. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 173

174 Although the 2014 training calendar is impressive, it is concerning that there is no scheduled shift training for January; rather the preponderance of the training time is dedicated to house cleaning. One has to question if house cleaning is going to be of any value at the emergency scene? A busy department cannot guarantee, for example, that 09:00 to 11:00 will be dedicated to training without interruption by emergency events. However, it is prudent to designate a time when the crew, if available, will conduct a minimum of two hours of training per shift. The department recently designated only Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays as dedicated training days; Thursdays and Fridays dedicated to other tasks, Saturdays to pre-plans, and no official work schedule on Sundays with the exception of apparatus checks. The first week is dedicated to fire training; followed by the second week dedicated to EMS. This rotation remains throughout the year. When reading the department s SOGs it appears times and dates are in fact noted; however, during the interviews it was made clear that training is inserted in the day whenever possible. Emergency calls come first; however, a greater emphasis on aligning non-emergency activities would be beneficial. Recommendation Designated Training Times The training calendar should be more comprehensive and designate a time of day dedicated to training. Postponement or cancellation of training at that time should be limited to emergency responses only. Priority 4 Most training programs require the on-duty personnel to train every work day. Some departments allow Sunday to be an exception, such as the SFD. Members are scheduled to work a maximum of 122 days annually (2 shifts, 1 shift 121 days), before subtracting vacation, sick or other official time off. With members working less than 122 days a year, it is not unreasonable to require Sunday training to accomplish training goals. In those instances in which individual members of the SFD do not achieve the minimum of 210 training hours required by ISO, those members would benefit from an opportunity to train on Sunday. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 174

175 Recommendation Training Days Leadership needs to reassess if other tasks and no work on Sundays is of greater value to the department than required training. Nothing should diminish the safety of emergency responders, and training offsets those dangers the best. Priority 2 Daily Shift Training Standard Sources NFPA 1001 Standard for Fire Fighter Professional Qualifications, edition 2013: chapter 5 Fire Fighter I, and chapter 6 Fire Fighter II list firefighting skills taught in the certification class for Fire Fighter I & II. These are excellent topics for daily training as this knowledge and skills will be utilized throughout the members careers: Daily training topics from NFPA 1001 are listed in the table below: Table 46: NFPA 1001 Basic Training Topics Training Continuing Education Topics Mission of the Fire Service Fire behavior SFD Standard Operating Guidelines (SOG s) Overhaul SFD Rules and Regulations Salvage Fire and Life Safety Initiatives to reduce injuries and LODD Automatic fire sprinkler / standpipe systems Physical Fitness and Healthy Lifestyle Water supply Personal protective clothing; Mobile water supply apparatus SFD communication: phones, radios, verbal / written Fire hose: loads, deployment, supply, draft Initiate a response to reported emergency Classification of fires, extinguishers, Reporting an emergency, taking/receiving alarms, Radio codes and procedures Scene lighting Operate SFD communication equipment Electrical, gas, water and utility systems SFD personal accountability system Ground cover fire operations Donning and Use of SCBA Ropes, knots, hoisting equipment Establish and operate within emergency work areas Inspect and maintain SFD tools and equipment Forcible entry Inspect fire hose, note defects Basic building construction Incident management system Work in areas with limited visibility Ground ladders: Raise, carry, extend, climb Vehicle fires Fire streams: handlines and master streams Search and Rescue in structures Fire attack Ventilation Characteristics of pressurized flammable gas Cause and origin, evidence preservation Basic incident reporting Flammable liquid fires, firefighting foam Coordinate an interior fire attack Hose/ nozzle for fire attack Dangerous building conditions Assemble a team for fire attack Attack a flammable gas cylinder fire FF II role in fire investigations Extrication from motor vehicle accidents McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 175

176 Training Continuing Education Topics SFD role at vehicle accidents Hand and power tools for forcible entry Assist special rescue teams, knowledge of tools Fire inspections, code compliance Fire causes and prevention Fire station tours per SFD SOG s Present prepared fire prevention materials/document Water supplies for fire protection Prepare pre-incident surveys Sketch the site, identify systems, hazards Maintain power supplies, power tools, inspect Clean/maintain equipment per SFD SOG s Annual fire hose testing Record testing results per SFD SOG s Standard Lesson Plans The consultants were informed that the department does not maintain standard lesson plans within the department library. Lesson plans are developed for use, by the respective instructors, however they are not required to submit their lesson plans as documentation or for future use. Without standard lesson plans, a department moves in a very independent fashion which can result in non-uniformity on the emergency scene or enhancement of freelancing (firefighters working independent of the team approach). Members safety is improved when all are taught the same material in the same format and must show competency in the same manner. Lesson Plans Should Have: Each training session should require the following: Class/lesson title References Lesson plan o Goal Objectives o Learning objectives o Reference to the curriculum utilized by the department o Listing of materials needed o Location of the training o Time required Lesson preparation Motivation for learning the particular subject McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 176

177 Lesson outline Practice Summary Method to ensure competency Documentation Instructor certification Participant sign-in (not a check sheet) The Liability of Poor Training With an increasingly litigious society, the liabilities associated with poor training and/or poor documentation of that training, are enormous. Within the last decade there has been an increased tendency for municipalities/districts to be stripped of their immunity protection when dealing with an employee s injury or death. It is hoped that the SFD never experiences a firefighter s line-of-duty death. However, in the event of such an occurrence or a serious line-of-duty injury, a large number of state and federal agencies would conduct independent investigations. At minimum, the Fire Department would need to provide the investigators with the following: Documentation that the individual received training in the evolution(s) in which the death/injury occurred. Comprehensive curriculum of the training topic. Attendance sheet with the individual s signature indicating he/she attended not a list of member s names with a check-off box. Record of the instructor s qualifications to teach the topic. Competency documentation showing how the department measured the ability of the individual to safely perform the task in which he or she was injured. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 177

178 Historical record showing how frequently this topic was instructed and what other topics supported a safe environment under the conditions found at the accident scene. In the event of a serious accident or line-of-duty death, lack of such documentation could result in fines from both state and/or federal agencies, as well as leave the Fire Department and perhaps even the City open to serious civil litigation. In addition, the following should be recorded into the record management system: date of the training, time and duration of the training, class objectives, audio/training aids utilized, training participants feedback, notes or comments by the instructor on how the training could be improved. Recommendation Documentation The City and Fire Department members must realize the liability of lack of training and lack of proper documentation of training. Documentation of training is as important as the training itself. The department would benefit from greater emphasis placed on training and documentation. Priority 2 Supervisor (Fire Officer) Training Within the fire service, it is very common to have an individual serving as a firefighter one day and be an officer the next. In many departments the transition from firefighter to fire officer is based solely on changing the color of the shirt and/or badge. It is as if the fire fighter experienced a form of magical osmosis, leaving the rank and file and miraculously prepared to serve in a supervisory position. There is no assurance that the best firefighter with outstanding job skills will somehow become a great manager because of a promotion. Management and leadership skills can be learned and officers need constant training on how to best deal with emergency situations as well as the nonemergency issues they face the preponderance of the day with their personnel. The SFD does not employ a formal officer training program or curriculum for preparing their firefighters to lead. The consultants do not question the fire, special rescue and EMS skills of the SFD personnel, although daily training to reinforce and learn new skills is encouraged. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 178

179 However, SFD fire officers are not required to obtain formal supervisory/management training beyond those certifications offered by the State of Indiana Fire Training System. The consultants learned that continuing education for fire officers could be obtained by their attendance at the Fire Department Instructors Conference (FDIC), held annually in Indianapolis. SFD fire officers are able to satisfy their annual (12 hours) training requirements, simply by attending the FDIC. The consultants do not disqualify FDIC as a means of receiving quality training; rather it should not be the sole source of SFD fire officer training. The Deputy Chief indicated that the member only needs to indicate they received the 12 hours from some source but no validation is required nor officer training records kept. The table below illustrates training topic appropriate for any line officer (including acting officers) through the rank of Fire Chief: Table 47: Supervisor Training Program Training - Supervision Topics Principle of Supervision Managing Change Management vs. Leadership Diversity Supervisor: Linking Pin Concept Problem Solving Ethics Managing Differences Dealing with Conflict Managing Multiple Projects Legal Time Management - Harassment Delegation - Discrimination Performance Management - Job (race, religion, sex or national origin) - Documentation - Age - Evaluations - Disability (Americans with Disabilities Act) Employee Attitudes - Military - Coaching - Fair Labor Standard Act (FLSA) - Motivation - Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) - Empowerment - Gender-pay differences - Influencing - Pregnancy - Discipline - Immigration Confidentiality - Sexual Orientation Strategic Thinking Workplace Safety Political Savvy Communication Negotiating Interpersonal Relationships Creativity Team Building Innovation McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 179

180 Recommendation Officer Training All officers should be required to obtain a minimum of two hours per month in addition to all other training requirements. Priority 2 ISO Training Points Awarded Included within an ISO assessment of a municipal fire department s ability to provide service is a review of the department s fire training program. Obviously, this is a means to ensure that the firefighters expected to provide emergency service are trained to provide that service. Although contemporary fire departments provide a wide variety of services such as EMS and special rescue operations, ISO primarily focuses their reviews on fire suppression training. Fire departments such as the SFD must be mindful of the ISO requirements, as a failure to train and maintain records can quickly become detrimental to their current and future ISO fire rating. A summary of the items ISO considers when reviewing a community s training for firefighters includes: Facilities and Aids o Drill Tower o Fire building (including smoke room) o Combustible liquid pit In areas where federal, state or local officials prohibit the use of combustible-liquid pits, credit may be available for video simulation depicting extinguishment of flammable-liquid fires. o Library and training manuals o Fire pump cutaway o Fire hydrant cutaway Use o Half-day (3 hours) drill, 8 per year o Half-day (3 hours) multiple-company drills, 4 per year o Night drills (3 hours), 2 per year o ISO may credit a single-company drill under the first and last of these items; ISO may credit multiple-company drills under all three. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 180

181 Company Training o Company (Shift) training at fire stations, 20 hours per member per month Officer Training o Two days (6 hours each) per year for all officers Driver and Operator Training o Four half-day (3 hours each) sessions per year New Driver and Operator Training o One half-day (3 hour) session per member per year Training on Radioactivity of Hazardous Materials o One half-day (3 hour) session per member per year Recruit Training o 240 hours per recruit ( does not include EMS) Fire Pre-plans and Inspections o The community (department) should have a fire pre-plan inspection of each commercial, industrial and other similar structure twice a year to achieve maximum credit in the FSRS (ISO Fire Suppression Rating Schedule). Records of the inspections should include complete and up-to-date notes and sketches. Records o When a community s (department) records are incomplete, ISO can reduce the total points credited for training by up to 20 points each for the items listed above (see ISO FSRS schedule for reference) In their report dated January 30, 2015, ISO published the results of the analysis of the firefighting capabilities of the Shelbyville Fire Department. Of the many critical elements included within this analysis was the department s training program. To have achieved a maximum score, the training program would have had to receive a rating of 12 credits. The Fire Department does have plans to construct a fire training facility for future use. Upon review of the training program the department earned 3.96 credits or 44% of the points as illustrated in the table below: McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 181

182 Table 48: ISO Points Earned for Training ISO Item Credit for Training (9 points) Training A. Facilities, and Use: For maximum credit, each firefighter should receive 18 hours per year in structured fire related subjects as outlined in NFPA B. Company Training: For maximum credit, each firefighter should receive 16 hours per month in structured fire related subjects as outlined in NFPA Earned Credit Credit Available C. Classes for Officers: For maximum credit, each officer should be certified in accordance with the general criteria of NFPA Additionally, each officer should receive 12 hours of continuing education of or off site. D. New Driver and Operator Training: For maximum credit, each new driver and operator should receive 60 hours of driver/operator training per year in accordance with NFPA 1002 and NFPA 1451 E. Existing Driver and Operator Training: For maximum credit, each existing driver and operator should receive 12 hours of driver/operator training per year in accordance with NFPA 1002 and NFPA 1451 F. Training on Hazardous Materials: For maximum credit, each firefighter should receive 6 hours of training for incidents involving hazardous materials in accordance with NFPA 472 G. Recruit Training: For maximum credit, each firefighter should receive 240 hours of structure fire related training in accordance NFPA 1001 within the first year of employment or tenure. H. Pre-Fire Planning Inspections: For maximum credit, prefire planning inspections of each commercial, industrial, institutional, and other similar type building (all buildings except 1*-4 family dwellings) should be made annually by company members. Records of inspections should include upto-date notes and sketches Item580 "Credit for Training (CT)" = 3.96 or 44% of maximum McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 182

183 Recommendation ISO Training Points There are significant opportunities to improve the entire training program in the SFD; especially in Facilities, and Use, and New Driver and Operator Training. Greater emphasis on the part of Fire Department leadership needs to be invested in the training program. Priority 2 Training Library Also used to support the delivery of training is the SFD Training Library that includes textbooks, and department EMS protocols and department Standard Operating Guidelines. Found within the library are lesson plans and videos, produced by nationally recognized training organizations or publishers such as IFSTA (International Fire Service Training Association); NFPA (National Association of Fire Protection), Fire Engineering and Jones & Bartlett. The table below illustrates the training material currently in the SFD library: Table 49: SFD Library Training Contents SFD Library Contents EMS Fire Brady NFPA Paramedic Care Fire Engineering Critical Care Paramedic Fire Dept. Training Network Anatomy + Physiology NIST 12 Lead for Acute + Critical Care OSHA AMLS Jones + Bartlett SFD Protocols & Run Audits Firehouse Internet - Ves.Com/FFClose Calls Essential Curriculum SFD - SOGs Recommendation Training Library Training material created by instructors such as PowerPoints, lesson plans, etc. should be kept in the training library for future use either as a class or individual training. Priority 4 Pre-Fire Planning Inspections The consultants were told that department leadership has placed a higher priority on the development of pre-fire plans which are scheduled for Saturdays. However, during the study little progress had been made and the consultants were told that they were waiting for McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 183

184 instructions on this aspect of the ESO software. There was some discussion as to the disagreement if these documents should be placed on the computer or in a booklet format. Section H of the ISO evaluation indicated the department received 9.96 points of a possible 12 possible points for this area. At the time of the study the department indicated they had completed approximately 100 pre-fire plans. Recommendations Pre-ire Plans The consultants encourage the emphasis placed on pre-fire plans as it is a significant safety factor for responding personnel. These pre-fire plans are best suited for electronic transmissions to the mobile data terminals in the fire apparatus. Priority 3 McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 184

185 Community Development & Growth The consultants did meet with the Director of Plan Commission and Building Commission and reviewed the City of Shelbyville Comprehensive Plan dated June 7, The City of Shelbyville has been experiencing limited growth and it is expected that the growth will increase as the economy improves. The City is currently in the process of doing road construction in the area of I-74 and Fairlane Road south of the interstate. These road improvements will allow the development of an industrial park area with the road improvements being completed in stages over a period of time. The following transportation map indicates the first phase of the road construction. Figure 33: Shelbyville Transportation Map First Phase of Road The other areas that are expected to see growth are the areas near the two interstate interchanges near I-74 and Hwy 9 and I-74 and Hwy 44. The growth in both cases would be primarily highway commercial and general commercial. In addition, future growth in single family residential will be in the area north of I-74 off of Knightstown Road and on the Southside of the city. The future land use map is shown in the following figure: McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 185

186 Figure 34: Shelbyville Future Land Use Map First Phase Road The following figure illustrates the locations of community facilities including the fire stations: Figure 35: Community Facilities including Fire Stations Fire Station Fire Station Fire Station McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 186

187 The growth in the City of Shelbyville can be seen in the following table as shown by the number of building permits during the five years: Table 50: Shelbyville New Construction Permits & Values City of Shelbyville Permits and Construction Values Building Permits Construction Values $9,885,605 $20,308,408 $22,635,348 $19,399,072 $83,949,087 In 2014, the building permit for the new hospital was valued at $64,000,000 and the Indiana Grand Racing & Casino had building permits issued for over $2.25 million in value. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 187

188 Fire Prevention / Public Safety Education Fire prevention activities historically have been driven for various reasons: interest in the public s and firefighters safety, while other acts were profit-driven by insurance companies looking to reduce insurance claims. At one time insurance companies had special crews that responded alongside the fire departments to help mitigate, protect insured s belongings, and help to reduce the loss from fire; this is now a function of the fire department. Whatever the reason, everyone benefits when the loss from fires are reduced and even greater if fires can be prevented. Obviously the fire service has demonstrated their ability to fend off the budgetary assaults and still maintain their absolute focus on fire suppression. This has been accomplished by sacrificing the fire prevention and public education programs, which interestingly enough, as an average 3.49% goes to fire prevention and 0.65% to public safety education. The percentage of the budget for fire prevention drops as the departments get smaller. (Source: EFOP research project NFA, Fire Prevention in America at the Dawn of the New Millennium, by Azarang Mirkhah, P.E.). Fire departments in the U.S. place greater emphasis on fire suppression over fire prevention. One reflection of this is the high standards set for fire department response times and fire suppression performance. If firefighters in other countries do not respond to fires as quickly as firefighters in the U.S., why are their fire death rates lower? Simply put, it is a function of the level of resources devoted to fire suppression versus fire prevention. Other countries place a higher premium on their ability to prevent fires rather than their ability to put them out once fires occur. (ibid). Shelbyville Fire Department Fire Prevention All fire inspection and prevention activities in Shelbyville are handled by a single person assigned to the fire prevention bureau. The fire prevention inspector is a civilian employee working a 40-hour week Monday through Friday. Activities of the fire prevention inspector include: regularly scheduled fire inspections, plan reviews, inspecting special venues such as the fairgrounds for special events, and working with state and local inspectors on new and renovated construction projects. These activities require a McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 188

189 large portion of time and are primary function of the SFD fire prevention bureau activities. In addition, accompanying state inspectors on educational occupancies as well as health care facilities is also a part of the duties. Fire investigations are not conducted by the fire prevention bureau, but carried out through the Fire Department shift investigators. It was reported that there are approximately 1,300 inspectable occupancies located within Shelbyville s corporate boundaries and that the majority are an assortment of small to mid-size business, commercial, mercantile and multifamily occupancies which generally do not require a detailed, lengthy fire inspection. There are however, larger industrial, manufacturing, commercial, special and multi-family complexes do in fact require more extensive evaluation and oversight due to the inherent dangers they present to the public, its occupants, as well as firefighters. In 2014 the fire prevention inspector conducted approximately 700 inspections and/or reinspections representing 53.84% of the total occupancies in Shelbyville. These fire inspections were not conducted based on risk, hazard level or any particular occupancy. Most fire prevention codes require that each occupancy be inspected annually and that records need to reflect the conditions found, violations noted, and when corrective action was taken. Company Inspections Currently, there is no type of company fire inspection program conducted by on-duty fire personnel through the SFD at this time. The consultants would recommend utilizing on-duty (company) shift personnel to conduct rotating basic fire inspections in order to ensure all occupancies are inspected annually. The shift personnel would also be responsible for the first re-inspection if a violation was noted. If there are 1,300 inspectable occupancies, each shift would need to conduct 433 inspections per year; however, many of these occupancies are small and adjoin each other and multiple inspections could be performed by a single individual. Shift personnel would need to be trained by the Fire Inspector in the proper procedure for conducting routine basic fire inspections. All occupancies that had unique challenges, significant McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 189

190 code violations were discovered, or the violations remained after the first shift re-inspection, it would be referred to the Fire Inspector. There are many advantages of company fire inspections; however, one of the most important is safety for the firefighters who have the ability to see the layout of the occupancy prior to having to enter it when it is on fire. The goal of the Fire Department leadership should be that all qualifying occupancies are inspected on an annual basis and this could easily be accomplished by incorporating company inspections. Recommendation Fire Prevention The department should develop a company fire inspection program where each of the three shifts would be assigned a given number of occupancies each month to complete. Priority 3 Training of shift personnel on how to conduct company inspections should be done by the Fire Inspector. Issues found by the shifts that exceed their training or are unique should be referred to the Fire Inspector. Priority 3 Self-Inspections Some communities have instituted a self-inspection program for businesses that have a record of no violations and adhere to all fire prevention requirements. In these cases the business owner would complete a self-inspection sheet and send it to the Fire Prevention Bureau. The Fire Prevention Officer, or the fire companies would do spot checking to ensure the sheets are maintained accurately. Depending on the size and nature of the business, these occupancies might only require a company inspection every two to three years. All self-inspection sheets should be recorded by the Fire Prevention Bureau. The consultants recommend consideration to a self-inspection fire program as well. Recommendation Self-Inspections The fire inspector should consider the self-inspection program for businesses that have a proven track record of compliance with all fire prevention codes and regulations. Priority 4 McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 190

191 Pre-Fire Plans Pre-fire planning of commercial, institutional, multi-family residential (common areas), and industrial buildings by the fire department is of great value to firefighting personnel safety. Prefire planning is a very important component of firefighter training and readiness. Fire preplanning programs are formal programs where the firefighting companies familiarize themselves and others with the buildings they are expected to protect. The SFD indicated that a goal for 2015 was to significantly increase the number of occupancies that have pre-fire plans completed; currently estimated at approximately 100 pre-plans. Pre-fire plan programs include site visits to properties within the City/District to gather information as to the hazards and problems that may occur in the event of an emergency such as a fire or explosion. These site visits allow the firefighters to sketch the buildings and gather other pertinent information about a structure that can be referenced directly or transmitted by radio if an emergency event occurs in the structure. All such information goes back to the fire station for further development and dissemination. ESO Solutions software has a modular designed solely for this purpose. At some point in time, all commercial structures should have a pre-fire plan for reference when/if the need arises. The best method to subject all fire department members to the hazards of the buildings they might enter to fight a fire is to include pre-planning as part of the training curriculum of the department. This training should include an actual walk-through of high-risk buildings by the entire crew. The greatest benefit of fire pre-plans is firefighter safety. Conventional wisdom would suggest that when a firefighter is about to enter a building for life safety or fire suppression purposes, knowledge of that building is beneficial to the member; it is also beneficial to the business itself in that it could result in quicker extinguishment and less property damage. The pre-fire plan program should include the gathering of the following information pertaining to each occupancy: Location-address Owner and key holder contact information Occupancy information McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 191

192 Access points keyed and forcible entry Special hazards Type of construction Available water supply Building protection systems and their location Utilities, including the location of shut-offs Exposures Special resource considerations Technical rescue exposures Hazardous materials presence Particular life hazard issue The presence of lightweight trusses in construction Like any program in the fire department, success of the duty shift inspection and pre-fire plan program will require the company officer to hold shift members accountable for completion of these programs. It can be anticipated that some might respond by indicating they (fire department) are too busy to conduct company inspections and/or pre-plans; however, no fire department member should be too busy to consider his/her personal safety worth the time investment. Recommendations Fire Pre-Plan On-duty shift personnel should be assigned to develop pre-plans while conduction company inspections. Each shift should be assigned the inspectable occupancies in which to inspect and develop pre-plans. Priority 2 The Fire Department needs to implement an aggressive pre-fire plan program that over time will create a pre-fire plan for all non-residential buildings. Priority 2 The pre-fire plans should be developed through the ESO Solutions software module incorporated in the data management system and the plans should become part of the training curriculum. Priority 5 McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 192

193 Shelbyville Public Safety Education The SFD Public Safety Education program is overseen/coordinated by a shift firefighter/paramedic. Additional department personnel will participate in the various programs upon request. Although overseeing public safety education from a shift position is not as difficult as overseeing training; it is not without challenges and SFD has a successful public safety education program as illustrated in the data provided below: Table 51: Public Safety Education Contacts Public Safety Education Contacts Year Adults Children , , ,154 Total 1,863 9,588 As with most fire department public safety education programs, Shelbyville s program leans heavily towards children in an attempt to establish the importance of safety at an early age. The coordinator presents safety programs in public and parochial schools for students from preschool to fifth grade. Once a year the department participates in Occupation Day at the high school. Other routine safety education programs include: Fourth grade field trip, in which safety education is presented Pre-school fire department tours Presentation for schools outside of the City limits upon request Safety presentations of seniors Open house during fire prevention week Different outlets for printed newsletters Participation in Head Start Pre-school with parents Fire department presence in community festivals CPR demonstrations Fire extinguisher demonstrations (usually in conjunction with extinguisher companies) Program A Day in the Life of a Firefighter presentations (most popular program) McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 193

194 Community service club presentation In addition the SFD indicated they have made safety education presentations to the following groups during the three-year study period as illustrated in the table below: Table 52: Organizations Receiving Safety Education Presentation Groups Aktion Club JAG Class Ashford Place Pig Roast Japanese students (Sister City) Bark in the Park Loper Commons Bears of Blue River Festival MOPS Community Network meeting Optimist Club Connersville Elementary School Parks Dept Preschool Cub Scout Troops Ryobi Fire Prevention Week Open House St. Joseph Catholic School Girls, Inc. Trade Fair Headstart Festival Waldron Drivers Education Class Headstart Preschool Waldron Elementary School Hendricks Pointe Women of the Workforce Indiana Downs Farm Safety Day The Fire Department could partner with the City s police department and County Sheriff s Department in the implementation of the NFPA Risk Watch Program in conjunction with the Lowes Home Safety Council. This program is present in cooperation with the classroom instructor for school aged children 14 and under. The components of the Risk Watch Program include: Poison Prevention Choking/Suffocation/Strangulation Prevention Fire Prevention and Burn Prevention Motor Vehicle Safety Falls Prevention Firearms Injury Prevention Bike and Pedestrian Safety Water Safety McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 194

195 Recommendation Public Safety Education The Fire Department should incorporate the NFPA and Lowe s Home Safety Council s Risk Watch Program in conjunction with the City Police and County Sheriff s Department. Priority 5 The Fire Department budget for safety education in 2014 was $2,800 or 0.09% of the Fire Department s budget. Many of the safety handouts are obtained through the National Safety Council. The safety education officer is part of a regional organization in Indianapolis who share ideas and support to members. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 195

196 Information Technology The Shelbyville Fire Department does use information technology to a limited degree. The Fire Department has about ten desktop computers, one notebook computer for training, one notebook computer for the fire inspector and six mobile computers which are Panasonic Toughbooks for the fire apparatus and ambulances. All fire stations have internet access with Station #1 and Station #2 having fiber optic lines installed. Fire Station #3 has internet access through Comcast Cable Company. All three stations have access to the Fire Department network for the use of the ESO Solutions software and the National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS). All ambulances and engines have computers (WDA s), but the WDA s are not being used to record en-route or on-scene times with the CAD system. The Fire Department is still using the vehicle mobile radios to communicate their en route and on-scene times. The Fire Department is using Verizon cards in the computer for internet access and all six EKG monitors have data packs to transmit EKG s to the hospital. All front line apparatus and the Battalion Chief vehicles have cell phones for communications. The consultants were informed the major problem with the Fire Department information technology system is that they lose internet connections multiple times daily and even dispatch loses their internet connection. Recommendation Information Technology The City and Fire Department should work together in finding a solution to the problem of the internet connection being disconnected multiple times daily. The loss of the internet connection causes problems for Fire Department operations and recording of data. Priority 2 McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 196

197 Fiscal/Capital Analysis City of Shelbyville Fire Department Budget Budget Funding The City of Shelbyville General Fund Budget funds all of the basic services provided by the City. The City of Shelbyville budget year is from January 1 st through December 31 th. The primary sources of revenue for the General Fund budget include property taxes, Auto-Aircraft excise taxes, CAGIT Certified Shares and Replacement Credit, alcohol and cigarette taxes, Emergency Ambulance Fees, Fire Protection Agreements, licenses and permits, fines and forfeitures and charges for services. The General Fund budget is used to provide funding for the following major service areas including: Mayor s Office Clerk-Treasurer Office City Council City Hall Department City Attorney and City Engineer Police Department Fire Department Custodian Emergency Ambulance Other Departments and projects identified in the annual budget document The City of Shelbyville does contract for Financial Advisor Services with the Financial Solutions Group, Inc. of Plainfield, Indiana. The Financial Advisor has worked with the City of Shelbyville in developing a Recovery/Budget Analysis also called the Financial Sustainability Plan. The Sustainability Plan takes into consideration the future City of Shelbyville Expenses and Revenues. It is a planning document for the City to use to assure they are stable in their financial condition and are planning their spending based on their projected revenues. Most of the budget figures for this section have been taken from this Sustainability Plan as it looks at multiple years of spending and revenues. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 197

198 Total City Revenues for Major Funds The following table indicates the amount of revenue generated by the major city funds for the 2012 to 2015 budget years. Table 53: Total City Major Fund Revenues 2012 to 2015 Revenue Fund Name 2012(Actual) 2013(Actual) 2014 Budget 2015 Budget General $13,519, $12,551, $13,281, $14,139, Motor, Vehicle, Highway (MVH) $694, $764, $851, $1,064, Park Fund $1,566, $1,190, $1,248, $1,548, Comm. Econ. Dev. Fund $68, $72, $72, $72, Total $15,848, $14,579, $15,453, $16,825, Source: City of Shelbyville Recovery/Budget Analysis The City revenue increased about 6% from 2012 actual to the budgeted in In both 2013 actual and 2014 budgeted the projected revenue had a decrease from 2012 revenue. Total City Tax Expenditures The following table indicates the amount of expenditures for the 2009 to 2011 budget years. Table 54: Total Annual City Appropriations Appropriations Fund Name 2012(Actual) 2013(Actual) 2014 Budget 2015 Budget General Fund $13,249, $12,211, $13,867, $14,347, Motor, Vehicle, Highway (MVH) $652, $639, $935, $1,093, Park Fund $1,644, $1,304, $1,477, $1,500, Comm. Econ. Dev. Fund $23, , $133, $0.00 Total $15,589, $14,217, $16,414, $16,941, Source: City of Shelbyville Recovery/Budget Analysis The City has had rather modest increases in expenditures with an 8.66% increase from 2012 actual budget to the 2015 budgeted amount. The general fund appropriations increased about 8.28% from the 2012 actual budget to the 2015 projected budget. The general fund is the fund that this fiscal section will focus on as it is used to fund the fire and ambulance services. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 198

199 The following table reflects the percentage of the total city general fund budget required to fund the fire, ambulance and police departments for the years indicated: Table 55: Police and Fire Department Budgets as a Percentage of Total City Budget % of % of Department General General Actual Actual Budget Fund Fund % of General Fund 2015 Budget % of General Fund Fire $2,925, % $3,010, % $3,100, % $3,309, % Ambulance $1,869, % $1,909,180 15,21% $2,054, % $2,098, % Police $4,052, % $3,893, % $4,272, % $4,410, % Total City General Fund Budget 13,519, % 12,551, % 13,281, % 14,408, % Source: City of Shelbyville Recovery/Budget Analysis The above information reflects the fact the City of Shelbyville spent an average of approximately 67.92% of the total City General Fund budget for Fire, Ambulance and Police services for the years 2012 (actual) budget to 2015 (budgeted) budget. The following table reflects the total amount of spending and the percentage of the City General Fund budget for Fire and Ambulance Services for each year from 2012 to Table 56: Total Dollars and Percentage for Fire and Ambulance Services Department 2012 Actual % of General Fund 2013 Actual % of General Fund 2014 Budget % of General Fund 2015 Budget % of General Fund Fire $2,925, % $3,010, % $3,100, % $3,309, % Ambulance $1,869, % $1,909,180 15,21% $2,054, % $2,098, % Total $4,795, % $4, 919, % $5,155, % $5,407, % Total City General Fund Budget $13,519,212 $12,551,382 $13,281,329 $14,408,788 Source: City of Shelbyville Recovery/Budget Analysis The above table indicates that the total dollars spent for fire and ambulance services each year from 2012 to 2015 ranged from 35.42% to 39.19% of the total City General Fund Budget. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 199

200 Other Fire Department Revenue Ambulance Service Fees The City of Shelbyville does have a City Ordinance that allows for the collection of ambulance service fees by the Shelbyville Fire Department. The Ordinance and fees covered under the Ordinance include a mileage charge of $2.50 per one tenth of a mile for all transports. The majority of City of Shelbyville Fire Department ambulance transports are to the Major Hospital located in Shelbyville. The following table indicates the ambulance fees allowed by the City Ordinance for both residents and non-residents of Shelby County: Table 57: Shelbyville Ambulance Fees Shelby County Residents Type of Call Fee Basic Life Support (BLS) $1, Advanced Life Support (ALS) I $1, Advanced Life Support (ALS) II $1, Loaded Mileage $2.50 per one tenth mile Non-Residents Type of Call Fee Basic Life Support (BLS) $1, Advanced Life Support (ALS) I $1, Advanced Life Support (ALS) II $1, Loaded Mileage $2.50 per one tenth mile The City of Shelbyville had an agreement with William S. Major Hospital to perform ambulance billing service for the Shelbyville Fire Department. This original agreement was signed on or about December 8, In February 2014, the William S. Major Hospital notified the City of Shelbyville with a written notice that they agreed with the Fire Chief s recommendation to enter into an agreement with a private ambulance billing service to complete the ambulance billing and collection services for the City of Shelbyville. The hospital agreed with the Fire Chief s recommendation in the belief that the new arrangement would prove to be beneficial to both the Shelbyville Ambulance Service and Major Health Partners. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 200

201 The hospital also stated that if the new ambulance billing and collection service did not meet the expectations of improved financial benefits then the hospital would agree to reestablish the current billing service between the time the new billing service was implemented and December 31, Major Hospital also agreed to commit to provide the Ambulance Department all pharmaceutical and medical supplies at no charge to the City or County in the amount not to exceed $50,000 annually. The hospital also agreed to provide the required Medical Directorship at no charge to the City or County for the duration of the contract. On August 1, 2014, the City of Shelbyville Fire Department entered into a contract with Med- Bill of Indianapolis, IN to provide ambulance billing and collection services for the fee of five (5) percent of the monthly ambulance fee collections. The agreement also included the fee to be paid to Med-Bill of 25 percent of all collections received on accounts placed in collection status that had aged at least 120 days. The agreement was for a period of two years starting August 1, 2014 with automatic renewal for two year increments. Either the City of Shelbyville Fire Department or Med-Bill could terminate the contract by written notice to the other party not less than 60 days prior to the termination date of the contract. The consultants utilized the Recovery/Budget Analysis to obtain the actual and projected ambulance service fees for the year 2012 to Major Hospital was collecting ambulance fees for all of 2012 and In 2014, the hospital was billing for ambulance service until August 1, At that time, Med-Bill starting billing for ambulance fees. The City of Shelbyville Fire Department has projected higher collection rates with the new billing service. At the time this study was being conducted the final ambulance fee revenues for 2014 were not finalized. It is expected that the final amount of ambulance fees collected for 2014 and 2015 will increase significantly above the 2012 and 2013 collection numbers. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 201

202 The following table reflects the actual amounts of ambulance fees collected for the years 2012 and 2013 and the projected ambulance fee revenue for 2014 and Table 58: Ambulance Service Fees 2012 to 2015 Year Hospital Med-Bill 2012 Actual $860, N/A 2013 Actual $859,223,64 N/A 2014 Budgeted N/A $1,200, Budgeted N/A $1,300, Source: City of Shelbyville Recovery/Budget Analysis The consultants were not provided with information in terms of the amount billed on an annual basis compared to the amount collected. In most communities the average amount collected is usually between 70% and 75% of the total amount billed on an annual basis for ambulance service fees. The fees collected by the City of Shelbyville for ambulance services are reflected as City Revenue and not as Fire Department revenue, but obviously the funds are used to offset the ambulance operating costs, which will be explained in this section. Recommendation Ambulance Fees The City of Shelbyville should monitor the amount of dollars invoiced for ambulance service fees compared to the amount of revenue actual collected on a regular basis. The ambulance billing service most likely can produce the reports for the City. Priority 2 Shelby County Ambulance Service Revenue The Ambulance Service budget is funded by the City of Shelbyville and Shelby County on a 50%-50% basis. The Ambulance Budget is based on 22 personnel that are on the Shelbyville Fire Department being allocated to the ambulance service. In addition to the salaries and benefits of the 22 personnel Shelby County shares the cost of general operating supplies, utilities, phone and insurances. On a quarterly basis the City of Shelbyville determines the operating expenses for the Ambulance Service. The amount of ambulance service fee revenue is then deducted from the quarterly operating expenses. The balance of the ambulance service operating costs is then divided between the City and the County. The city then adds the County s share of the following expenses to determine the cost to Shelby County for the Ambulance Service for the quarter. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 202

203 On August 20, 2014 the City of Shelbyville and Shelby County signed an agreement for the allocation of the following ambulance service cost sharing formulas in addition to the 50%-50% sharing of the salaries and benefits. Utility expenses for Station #1 and Station #2 will be split with the City of Shelbyville Fire Department paying 67% and the Ambulance Service paying 33% of the costs. The 33% is then split between the City and the County. All utility invoices must be provided to the County. All general supplies for the Fire Department will be split with the City of Shelbyville Fire Department paying 67% and the Ambulance Service paying 33% of the costs. The 33% is then split between the City and the County. Annual Phone will be split with the City of Shelbyville Fire Department paying 67% and the Ambulance Service paying 33% of the costs. The 33% is then split between the City and the County. All general insurance costs are divided with the county on a 50%-50% basis. All medical insurance costs for the 22 personnel are divided with the county on a 50%- 50% basis. The following table is a sample of what a quarterly billing for ambulance service was for the first quarter of Table 59: Sample Quarterly Shelby County Ambulance Service Fees Total First Quarter Operating Costs Salaries, Benefits $371, Ambulance Fee Collection by Revenue Hospital Reimbursement ($230,915.51) Final Costs Total $140, Shelby County Share 50% $70, Electricity - $3, County Share $ 1, Gas - $2, County Share $ 1, Water - $ County Share $ Sewage - $ County Share $ McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 203

204 Total First Quarter Operating Costs Salaries, Benefits $371, Stormwater - $ County Share $ Telephone Per quarter County Share $ Medical Insurance Per Quarter County Share $ 36, General Insurance Per Quarter County Share $ 6, Total County Share with Utilities $ 117, The following table reflects the annual payment from Shelby County for Ambulance Service for 2012 to 2015 as reflected in the Recovery/Budget Analysis. The years 2012 and 2013 are actual costs. The years 2014 and 2015 were projected annual costs. Table 60: Annual Revenue from Shelby County for Ambulance Service Year Shelby County 2012 Actual $488, Actual $378, Budgeted $375, Budgeted $375, Source: City of Shelbyville Recovery/Budget Analysis The Financial Advisor Services group recommended in the Recovery/Budget Analysis report that they consider a better allocation of actual expenses for the Fire Protection and EMS Contracts and the consultants agree with this statement, but the City of Shelbyville and the Fire Department will need to improve the collection of data. In the Recovery/Budget Analysis report the Financial Advisor makes a statement that The City Fire Chief indicated he expects a total of 4,000 runs in 2013, with 50% inside the City and 50% outside the City. The consultants had the same number, but data (although known to be inaccurate) indicated the 50% figure for runs outside the City of Shelbyville was not even close to being an accurate number. Recommendations - Shelby County Ambulance Service Costs The City of Shelbyville and the Fire Department need to improve their collection of data in order to better track the actual costs for providing ambulance service within Shelby County, but outside the City of Shelbyville. Priority 2 The City of Shelbyville should consider renegotiating the ambulance service contract with Shelby County. Currently costs are most likely not being allocated properly. A contract that is based on a set amount annually with an annual increase for fees would be McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 204

205 easier to manage. The Fire Department probably spends a great deal of time and effort tracking costs and may not be tracking costs accurately. Priority 3 The costs for providing ambulance service to Shelby County should not just include the operating costs as there is value to having the resources available to respond to calls. The City has many resources available in terms of staffing, vehicles, communications, etc. and whether the resources are used or not there is still a cost to the City of Shelbyville that currently is not collected from the County for these resources. It could be compared to an insurance policy. Priority 3 Fire Protection Contracts The City of Shelbyville does contract with three Townships to provide fire protection services to each of the communities. The contract requires that the City of Shelbyville respond to all fire calls in each Township with at least one fire engine staffed with three personnel. The City of Shelbyville also provides ambulance service to each of these three Townships as part of the EMS services provided to Shelby County. The following table reflects the annual payment made by each Township for the fire protection services provided by the City of Shelbyville for the years 2012 to 2014 according to information provided the Fire Department: Table 61: Annual Townships Fire Protection Contract Revenues Township 2012 Amount Paid 2013 Amount Paid 2014 Amount Paid Shelby Township $11, $11, $11, Marion Township $18, $18, $18, Addison Township $36, $36, $36, Annual Totals $66, $66, $66, It should be noted that the analysis of the General Fund Report indicated the following revenue for Fire Protection Agreements for the years : Year Actual Actual Budgeted Fire Protection Agreements Revenue $48, $91, $92, Source: City of Shelbyville Recovery/Budget Analysis McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 205

206 The consultants have no answer as to why the amounts shown for revenue are different as provided by the Fire Department and from the General Fund Analysis developed by the Financial Advisor. Recommendation - Fire Protection Contracts The City of Shelbyville and the Fire Department need to improve their collection of data in order to better track the actual costs for providing fire protection services to the three Townships. Priority 3 Racino Funds The City of Shelbyville receives from the Indiana Grand Racing and Casino on an annual basis. The purpose of the funds received from the organization, referred to as Racino Funds, is to offset the costs of various City of Shelbyville department operations including the Shelbyville Fire Department. The Shelbyville Fire Department receives about $150, annually from the Racino funds. The funds are used by the Fire Department to offset the costs of fire engines, staff vehicles, tactical equipment, computers and software, self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA), thermal imaging cameras, new ambulance cots and other equipment. Recommendation - Racino Funds The City of Shelbyville and the Fire Department should have some new discussion about the need for any additional fire protection and ambulance services expected by the Indiana Grand Racing & Casino. If the expectation is for additional services, discussion should be initiated as to the expectations for funding the additional services and the reality of how the services could be funded. Priority 2 Fire Alarm Fees The City of Shelbyville does have an ordinance that requires property owners to pay a fee depending on the number of false alarms the property owner has per year. The following table reflects the fees imposed for false alarms according to the city ordinance: McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 206

207 Table 62: Fire Alarm Fees Number of False Alarms Fee General Occupancies 1 to 3 Alarms No Charge 4 and 5 Alarms $ Each 6,7 and 8 Alarms $ Each 9 Alarms or More $ Each According to the City of Shelbyville ordinance, each January the Fire Department shall bill alarm system owners for false alarms in the preceding year. The ordinance states that money collected for the false alarm runs shall be deposited in the Fire/EMS Training account. The City of Shelbyville Annual Budget indicates $ in funds were collected for False Alarms in the 2012 budget and no funds were collected in the following years. Recommendation - Fire Alarm Fees Over the three-year period of the City of Shelbyville Fire Department responded to an average of almost 113 false alarms annually based on the data provided. The Fire Department should improve their actual collection of data regarding their response to false alarms to accurately bill the property owners on an annual basis. Priority 2 Fire Grants The City of Shelbyville Fire Department has applied for grants under the Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) program administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency each year from 2012 to 2014, but was not successful in being awarded a grant from this program. The Shelbyville Fire Department also allied for grants for dry suits from the Indiana Department of Homeland Security Foundation in 2013 and did receive a grant. The department applied for another grant from this organization in 2015, but has not received a notice of the status of the application as of this date. Recommendation - Fire Grants The City of Shelbyville Fire Department should continue to apply for fire grants under the Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program (AFGP) and other sources as they become available. Priority 3 McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 207

208 Fire Department Budget The Shelbyville Fire Department operates with two different budgets. One budget is for the operation of the Fire Department and the second budget is known as the Emergency Ambulance Service. The primary reason to have two separate budgets is because in reality the Fire Department and Emergency Ambulance Service are still considered two different departments. The other reason is currently the amount of dollars paid by Shelby County for the emergency ambulance service is based on a percentage of the separate ambulance service budget. The consultants made a decision to utilize the budget numbers for this study from the Recovery/Budget Analysis document dated November 14, 2014 instead of the budget numbers provided by the Fire Department which were different in many instances. The consultants considered the fact that the Recovery/Budget Analysis was developed by the Financial Advisor Firm hired by the City. Fire Department Operating Budget The total annual operating fire department services budget for the City of Shelbyville Fire Department for the years 2012 to 2015 is shown in the following table: Table 63: Annual Fire Department Services Budget 2012 to 2015 Year Total Fire Department Services Budget 2012 Actual $2,935, Actual $3,010, Budgeted $3,100, Budgeted $3,309, Source: City of Shelbyville Recovery/Budget Analysis The above table indicates the fire department services budget increased about 12.73% over the four-year period, which equals just over 3% annual average increase. The total annual operating ambulance service budget for the City of Shelbyville Fire Department for the years 2012 to 2015 is shown in the following table: Table 64: Annual Ambulance Service Operating Budget 2012 to 2015 Year Total Ambulance Service Budget 2012 Actual $1,869, Actual $1,909, McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 208

209 2014 Budgeted $2,054, Budgeted $2,098, Source: City of Shelbyville Recovery/Budget Analysis The above table reflects an increase of about 12.22% in the ambulance services budget over a four-year period from 2012 to This averages to about a 3% increase on an annual budget. The total annual operating fire department services and ambulance service budget combined for the City of Shelbyville Fire Department for the years 2012 to 2015 is shown in the following table: Table 65: Annual Fire Services and Ambulance Service Operating Budgets 2012 to 2015 Year Total Fire Department Total Ambulance Total Fire and Services Budget Service Budget Ambulance Budget 2012 Actual $2,935, (61.09%) $1,869,498.99(38.90%) $4,805, Actual $3,010,772.11(61.19%) $1,909,180.49(38.80%) $4,919, Budgeted $3,100,742.00(59.64%) $2,054,808.00(39.52%) $5,198, Budgeted $3,309,710.00(61.20%) $2,098,134.00(38.79%) $5,407, Source: City of Shelbyville Recovery/Budget Analysis The above table indicates the total fire department services and ambulance service budgets combined increased about 12.54% over the four-year period between 2012 and 2015 budget years. The following table indicates a detailed analysis of the Fire Department budget for the last four years: Table 66: Total Annual Fire Department Services Budget Appropriations 2012 Actual 2013 Actual 2014 Budgeted 2015 Budgeted Salaries $2,251, $2,275, $2,334, $2,468, FICA & Medicare $30, $31, $37, $37, Indiana Fire Pension $395, $377, $406, $406, Clothing Allowance $15, $14, $15, $23, New Employee Clothing $0.0 $5, $5, $7, Replacement Clothing $2, $16, $18, $18, Stationary & Printing $ $ $1, $ Office Supplies $ $ $1, $ Computer Supplies $1, $ $2, $5, Fire Investigation $ $2, $7, $5, Fire Prevention Supplies $ $1, $2, $2, Investigation Education $1, Vehicle Fuels $28, $29, $31, $35, McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 209

210 Appropriations 2012 Actual 2013 Actual 2014 Budgeted 2015 Budgeted Oil and Additives $1,800,74 $7, $7, $7, Tires and Tubes $7, $7, $11, $11, Sanitation Supplies 0.00 $1, $3, $3, Mechanics Tools 0.00 $6, $4, $4, Mechanic s Education 0.00 $ $2, $1, Repair Parts $12, $27, $12, $25, General Supplies $4, $3, $4, $3, Medical Exams $6, $4, $6,474.0 $6, Postage $ $ $ $ Travel Expense 0.00 $ $ $ Telephone Radio & Communications $ $1,452,80 $2, $2, Advertising 0.00 $1, $1, General Insurance $87, $89, $95, $95, Electricity $20, $29, $18, $48, Natural Gas $3, $4, $7, $20, Water $2, $3, $2, $4, Sewage $1, $1, $1, $2, Storm Water Utility $1, $1, $1, $2, Equipment $23, $17, $12, $12, Building Repair $7, $10, $10, $15, Subscription & Dues $ $ $1, $1,000,00 Miscellaneous $15, $19, $16, $15, Instruction $11, $12, $15, $15, Total $2,935, $3,010, $3,100, $3,309, Source: City of Shelbyville Recovery/Budget Analysis It should be noted that the cost of health insurance for the fire department services employees is not included in the Fire Department budget as there is a separate line item budget account that reflects the cost of health insurance for most of the city employees as a group. The inclusion of the health insurance costs not being included in the fire department budget is based on a recommendation by the financial advisor for the City. There are a number of employees that are not included in the total health insurance costs as a single line in the budget. One exception is the ambulance service employee s health insurance costs are included in the ambulance service budget as a line item. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 210

211 Fire Department Services Budget - Salaries and Benefit Costs The following table indicates the cost of salaries & pension on an annual basis as a percentage of the annual fire department services budget. Table 67: Salaries and pension as a percent of annual fire department budget Appropriations 2012 Actual 2013 Actual 2014 Budgeted 2015 Budgeted Salaries $2,251, $2,275, $2,334, $2,468, FICA & Medicare $30, $31, $37, $37, Indiana Fire Pension $395, $377, $406, $406, Salaries & Pension Total $2,677, $2,684, $2,778, $2,914, Total Budget $2,935, $3,010, $3,100, $3,309, Salaries & Pension Annual Percentage 91.21% 89.15% 89.62% 88.06% Source: City of Shelbyville Recovery/Budget Analysis The above table reflects the costs of fire department services salaries and pension average between just over 88 percent to just over 91 percent of the total fire department services budget over the four year period between 2012 and The costs of salaries and pension costs increased about 8.84 percent over the four year period. Again, it should be noted the health insurance costs for the employees of the fire department emergency services budget are not included in these costs and are included in a separate line item budget. The health insurance costs for the ambulance service employees, which include 22 employees, are budgeted at an amount of $248, for This averages the cost of health insurance at about $11,275 per employee. To take this average amount and calculate the cost of about 38 employees in the fire department services budget would add an additional cost of about $428,450 to the fire department budget. Recommendation - Fire Department Services Budget - Salary and Benefit Costs The City of Shelbyville should consider placing the costs of employee health insurance into the fire department services budget. The placement of the health insurance costs within the budget reflects more accurate costs of the City of Shelbyville Fire Department. Priority 2 McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 211

212 Fire Department Services Budget Overview The Fire Department budget has been relatively stable during the past four years with the majority of the budget increases related to salaries and pension. This is expected since the salaries and pension contribute to almost 90% of the operating budget. The other accounts that have had significant increases have been for electricity which has increased by about 236% from $20, in 2012 to the budgeted amount of $48, in The natural gas account has experienced the same type of increase going from $3, in 2012 to a budgeted amount of $20, in 2015, which is an increase of about 507% in four years. Emergency Ambulance Services Operating Budget As stated earlier in this section the Emergency Ambulance Services has its own budget. The following table indicates a breakdown of the Emergency Ambulance Services budget for the last four years with 22 personnel and the Fire Department Secretary from the Fire Department included for salaries and benefits: Table 68: Total Annual Emergency Ambulance Services Budget Appropriations 2012 Actual 2013 Actual 2014 Budgeted 2015 Budgeted Ambulance Personnel $1,180, $1,197, $1,253, $1,325, Secretary $32, $32, $34, $34, Medicare $18, $18, $21, $21, PERF $3, $3, $4, $4, Medical Insurance $165, $165, $248, $ Indiana Fire Pension $213, $205, $219, $219, Clothing Allowance $8, $8, $8, $12, New Employee 0.00 $2, $5, $7, Clothing Replacement Clothing $4, $13, $13, $13, Stationary & Printing 0.00 $ $1, $ Office Supplies $1, $1, $1, $ Computer Supplies $ $1, $2, $5, Vehicle Fuels $23, $24, $25, $27, Oil and Additives $ $1, $1, $1, Tires and Tubes $1, $5, $6, $6, McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 212

213 Appropriations 2012 Actual 2013 Actual 2014 Budgeted 2015 Budgeted Sanitation Supplies $3, $2, $2, $3, Mechanics Tools 0.00 $4, $4, $4, Mechanic s Education 0.00 $ $2, $1, Repair Parts $4, $9, $8, $5, Other Supplies $5, $3, $4, $4, Physical Exams $3, $2, $3, $3, Postage $ $ $ $ Travel Expense 0.00 $ $ $ Telephone $11, $11, $10, $10, Radio & Communications $ $5, $2, $2, Printing & Advertising 0.00 $97.29 $1, General Insurance $98, $93, $56, $56, Electricity $21, $19, $25, $16, Natural Gas $4, $8, $7, $8, Water $1, $1, $2, $1, Sewage $ $ $1, $ Storm Water $ $ $1, $ Equipment Repair $10, $12, $8, $5, Service Contracts $28, $24, Building Repair 0.00 $14, $7, $7, Subscription & Dues $ $ $ $ Miscellaneous $37, $37, Instruction $22, $8, $21, $15, Total $1,869, $1,909, $2,054, $2,098, Emergency Ambulance Services Budget - Salaries and Benefit Costs The following table indicates the cost of salaries & pension on an annual basis as a percentage of the annual fire department services budget. Table 69: Ambulance services salaries and pension - Percent of annual budget with health insurance costs Appropriations 2012 Actual 2013 Actual 2014 Budgeted 2015 Budgeted Ambulance Personnel $1,180, $1,197, $1,253, $1,325, Secretary $32, $32, $34, $34, Medicare $18, $18, $21, $21, PERF $3, $3, $4, $4, Medical Insurance $165, $165, $248, $ Indiana Fire Pension $213, $205, $219, $219, Salaries & Benefits Total $1,613, $1,623, $1,760, $1,852, Total Budget $1,869, $1,909, $2,054, $2,098, Salaries & Pension Annual Percentage 86.29% 85.02% 85.65% 88.31% McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 213

214 The above table reflects the costs of emergency ambulance services salaries and benefits average between just over 85% to just over 88% of the total emergency ambulance services budget over the four-year period between 2012 and The costs of salaries and benefit costs increased about 14.85% over the four-year period. Again, it should be noted the health insurance costs for the employees of the emergency ambulance services budget are included in these costs. Again, the health insurance costs for the ambulance service employees, which include 22 employees, are budgeted at an amount of $248, for This averages the cost of health insurance at about $11,275 per employee. The following table reflects the cost of the emergency ambulance services department without health insurance costs being included as a percentage of the total budget. Table 70: Ambulance services salaries and pension - Percent of annual budget without health insurance costs Appropriations 2012 Actual 2013 Actual 2014 Budgeted 2015 Budgeted Ambulance Personnel $1,180, $1,197, $1,253, $1,325, Secretary $32, $32, $34, $34, Medicare $18, $18, $21, $21, Indiana Fire Pension $213, $205, $219, $219, Salaries & Pension Total $1,444, $1,454, $1,528, $1,579, Total Budget $1,869, $1,909, $2,054, $2,098, Salaries & Pension Annual Percentage 77.26% 76.17% 74.37% 75.25% Emergency Ambulance Services Budget Overview The emergency ambulance service budget has been relatively stable during the past four years with the majority of the budget increases related to salaries and pension. This is expected since the salaries and pension contribute to almost 88% of the operating budget including health insurance costs. Health insurance costs increased from $165,000 annually in 2012 to $248, in 2014 and 2015, which is a 50% increase. The other accounts have had minor increases, but considering the high percentage of total fire department emergency calls are for ambulance service the consultants could not see any issues with the ambulance operating budget. The only issue is whether or not all of the costs for the ambulance service are being allocated to the operating budget for the ambulance service properly. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 214

215 Fire Department Capital Budget The Shelbyville Fire Department does not have a capital improvement budget within the Fire Department budget. When the purchase of capital equipment or projects are made the costs are normally funded by the Cumulative Capital Development Fund, funds from the Indiana Grand Racing and Casino annual payment to the City of Shelbyville or through a lease purchase program. Recommendations Capital Budget A five-year capital outlay plan should be developed for the Fire Department in order to be better prepared for the long-term expenditures required. Priority 2 A fire apparatus purchase plan should be developed that realigns with the consultant s recommendations for future vehicle purchases and with realistic cost estimates. Priority 2 McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 215

216 Summary of Recommendations Priority Section Recommendation 1 Facilities 1 1 Human Resources Human Resources Station #3 should provide a secondary means of egress from the second floor in the event of an emergency. The door to the second floor stairwell should be two-hour rated and the hole between floors repaired. Change the Kelly Day practice to ensure that the Kelly Day falls within the pay cycle of the longest work days. Employees should not be allowed to work the Kelly Day as it defeats the purpose. Payroll should be based on the hours worked and time off within the 28 day cycle; not equally divided by the 26 pay periods. 2 2 Apparatus Equipment Apparatus Equipment Records should be maintained for all annual pump testing and aerial ladder and ladder testing. Once the two new engines are delivered in fall 2015, the current Engine 1, a 2005 Pierce, will become Engine 4. Strong consideration should be given to operating Engine 4 out of Fire Station #2 as the primary fire response vehicle, except for target hazard occupancies. This is known as cross-staffing vehicles and it is common in many fire departments the size of Shelbyville. 2 Apparatus Equipment The need to permanently maintain two aerial ladder apparatus in the City of Shelbyville fleet is not necessary based on the size of the community. We are not recommending taking the 1993 Sutphen Ladder #1 out of the fleet inventory at this time, but if it becomes a major problem due to maintenance costs then it should be removed from the fleet. 2 2 Apparatus Equipment Apparatus Equipment The City and Fire department should consider the possibility of remounting the three ambulances on new chassis when the vehicles are due for replacement. The costs savings would benefit the city and the taxpayers. With the buyout at the end of the five-year lease purchase there is a strong possibility the ambulances could be used for another couple of years before remounting is completed. When the lease purchase agreements end on the current ambulances the City and Fire Department should purchase a new ambulance on a lease purchase. With the current three ambulances being purchased and eventually remounted there would then be four ambulances in the fleet. If the goal of the city and the department is to have three ambulances in service, it will be necessary to have four ambulances in the fleet. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 216

217 Priority Section Recommendation Emergency Activities Emergency Activities Emergency Activities Emergency Activities The department leadership should query data fields outlined in this report on a monthly basis, for utilization in all of the above listed categories in the department s management. Fire department leadership should implement a data quality control/assurance program overseen by the Battalion Chiefs and submitted to the Deputy Chief monthly. The Fire Department should seek additional training from ESO- Solutions on data entry and retrieval procedures. The department leadership must ensure that all future data from the City s and County s CAD systems and that from their own data management system provide identical numbers. This is best accomplished through monthly quality/assurance meetings with the PSAP directors and the department leadership. 2 Facilities 2 Facilities 2 Facilities 2 Facilities 2 Facilities 2 Facilities 2 Facilities The consultants are recommending that a new fire station not be constructed at this time to serve the Northeast area of the City, but as the area develops and as the number of emergency calls in this area increase, then the need for a fire station can be reevaluated. Fire Station #1 and all new and existing fire stations be equipped with fire suppression (sprinklers) and fire alarm systems that are monitored by the PSAP. Station #1 should install a direct pipe to the outside of the building to supply intake air for the air compressor used to fill the self - contained breathing apparatus bottles. Station #2 should have their sprinkler and alarm system monitored by an off-site central alarm company. Station #2 should have their sprinkler and alarm system monitored by an off-site central alarm company. Station #3 should have a fire alarm system installed. This system should include smoke and carbon monoxide detection. Station #3 should have their sprinkler and alarm system monitored by an off-site central alarm company. 2 2 Fire Prevention Safety Education Fire Prevention Safety Education On-duty shift personnel should be assigned to develop pre-plans while conduction company inspections. Each shift should be assigned the inspectable occupancies in which to inspect and develop pre-plans. The Fire Department needs to implement an aggressive pre-fire plan program that over time will create a pre-fire plan for all nonresidential buildings. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 217

218 Priority Section Recommendation 2 Fiscal 2 Fiscal 2 Fiscal 2 Fiscal 2 Fiscal 2 Fiscal 2 Fiscal The City of Shelbyville should monitor the amount of dollars invoiced for ambulance service fees compared to the amount of revenue actual collected on a regular basis. The ambulance billing service most likely can produce the reports for the City. The City of Shelbyville and the Fire Department need to improve their collection of data in order to better track the actual costs for providing ambulance service within Shelby County, but outside the City of Shelbyville. The City of Shelbyville and the Fire Department should have some new discussion about the need for any additional fire protection and ambulance services expected by the Indiana Grand Racing & Casino. If the expectation is for additional services, discussion should be initiated as to the expectations for funding the additional services and the reality of how the services could be funded. Over the three-year period of the City of Shelbyville Fire Department responded to an average of almost 113 false alarms annually based on the data provided. The Fire Department should improve their actual collection of data regarding their response to false alarms to accurately bill the property owners on an annual basis. The City of Shelbyville should consider placing the costs of employee health insurance into the fire department services budget. The placement of the health insurance costs within the budget reflects more accurate costs of the City of Shelbyville Fire Department. A five-year capital outlay plan should be developed for the Fire Department in order to be better prepared for the long-term expenditures required. A fire apparatus purchase plan should be developed that realigns with the consultant s recommendations for future vehicle purchases and with realistic cost estimates. 2 2 Human Resources Human Resources In the next negotiations change the calculation of overtime to the 2,912 rate. Any potential savings could be used on the base pay. Detailed time sheets per employee should be submitted to the City payroll department for more accurate time reporting. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 218

219 Priority Section Recommendation 2 Information Technology The City and Fire Department should work together in finding a solution to the problem of the internet connection being disconnected multiple times daily. The loss of the internet connection causes problems for Fire Department operations and recording of data. 2 Response Time Dispatch SFD has complete control of how long it takes for apparatus to leave the station once they have been notified. SFD times received were for EMS only; therefore, the NFPA standard would be 60 seconds. SFD times were 65 seconds or only 8.3% higher; however, fire turnout times were not provided. The Fire Department leadership should begin to track turnout times and although only slightly higher than NFPA standards; striving to reach the NFPA standard. 2 Training 2 Training 2 Training 2 Training 2 Training The department should develop and implement training competency testing for all members to be conducted a minimum of semiannually. Members showing deficiencies should receive remedial training. The consultants recommend that all members who drive and operate department pumpers, aerial devices, and EMS ambulances be required to obtain and maintain the respective driver s certifications throughout their employment. Leadership needs to reassess if other tasks and no work on Sundays is of greater value to the department than required training. Nothing should diminish the safety of emergency responders, and training offsets those dangers the best. The City and Fire Department members must realize the liability of lack of training and lack of proper documentation of training. Documentation of training is as important as the training itself. The department would benefit from greater emphasis placed on training and documentation. All officers should be required to obtain a minimum of two hours per month in addition to all other training requirements. 2 Training There are significant opportunities to improve the entire training program in the SFD; especially in Facilities, and Use, and New Driver and Operator Training. Greater emphasis on the part of Fire Department leadership needs to be invested in the training program. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 219

220 Priority Section Recommendation 3 3 Apparatus Equipment Apparatus Equipment As long as the City Financial Consultant approves of purchasing fire department apparatus through the municipal lease purchase program with the buyout at the end of the lease at a cost of $1.00, it should be continued. When the time comes to replace Ladder #2 it should not be maintained in the fleet as a reserve aerial ladder as we are recommending that only one aerial ladder be maintained permanently. 3 3 Apparatus Equipment Emergency Activities The Fire Department vehicle replacement plan needs to be updated on an annual basis and communicated with the Mayor, Public Works and Safety Committee and the City Council so planning and budgeting for the future purchases can be accomplished. The on-duty staffing should be re-allocated to allow for a third ambulance to be placed in service on a daily basis. This will require existing resource deployment changes (perhaps jump company individuals respond with the apparatus which best meets the caller s needs). The additional ambulance billing income (not loss when a private ambulance is called) will help to offset the operational expenses. 3 Facilities Three options give regarding fire pole - two recommend discontinue use. 3 3 Fire Prevention Safety Education Fire Prevention Safety Education 3 Fiscal The department should develop a company fire inspection program where each of the three shifts would be assigned a given number of occupancies each month to complete. Training of shift personnel on how to conduct company inspections should be done by the Fire Inspector. Issues found by the shifts that exceed their training or are unique should be referred to the Fire Inspector. The City of Shelbyville should consider renegotiating the ambulance service contract with Shelby County. Currently costs are most likely not being allocated properly. A contract that is based on a set amount annually with an annual increase for fees would be easier to manage. The Fire Department probably spends a great deal of time and effort tracking costs and may not be tracking costs accurately. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 220

221 Priority Section Recommendation 3 Fiscal 3 Fiscal 3 Fiscal The costs for providing ambulance service to Shelby County should not just include the operating costs as there is value to having the resources available to respond to calls. The City has many resources available in terms of staffing, vehicles, communications, etc. and whether the resources are used or not there is still a cost to the City of Shelbyville that currently is not collected from the County for these resources. It could be compared to an insurance policy. The City of Shelbyville and the Fire Department need to improve their collection of data in order to better track the actual costs for providing fire protection services to the three Townships. The City of Shelbyville Fire Department should continue to apply for fire grants under the Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program (AFGP) and other sources as they become available Human Resources Human Resources Human Resources Human Resources Human Resources Human Resources Response Time Dispatch Standard of Response The city needs to change the players at the negotiations table to include the Fire Chief, Human Resources Director and a labor (or City) attorney. Develop a performance evaluation process that focuses on professional development opportunities. Within the next few years, consider instituting some succession planning so that employees are prepared for a promotion. Codify the promotional process so that the policy, contract, and job descriptions align. Update job descriptions to include supervisory skills, training, and experience required for the positions. A good employee does not automatically equate to a good supervisor. Training and experience should be required from the lieutenant on up. Work to involve the City s Human Resource Department in the recruitment and personnel function of the Fire Department. The City should investigate if there are technology improvements that could enhance emergency caller s information into the CAD system that would shorten the creation time. The standards of response coverage is a worthwhile internal assessment to address the all hazard risk potential impacting the department. Within the next year the SFD should utilize this tool in developing a strategic plan. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 221

222 Priority Section Recommendation 3 Training 3 Training 3 Training 3 Training All fire officers and those members that could fill-in for absent fire officers (acting officers), should be required to obtain and maintain as a minimum, certification as Fire Officer I, Fire Officer II and Fire Officer Strategy and Tactics. Members that have the responsibility of delivering training classes should at minimum be certified as Fire Instructor I. The Deputy Chief should ensure that all members of the department meet the EMS required hours as dictated by the Project Medical Director, and meet the ISO newly established 210 hour of fire training per member annually. The consultants encourage the emphasis placed on pre-fire plans as it is a significant safety factor for responding personnel. These prefire plans are best suited for electronic transmissions to the mobile data terminals in the fire apparatus Apparatus Equipment Apparatus Equipment Emergency Activities Fire Prevention Safety Education Human Resources Organize a cooperative effort for the City mechanics and Fire Department mechanic to aid one another in a time of need under the lead of the respective lead mechanic. Records should be maintained for all vehicle preventive maintenance and repairs. The SFD could benefit from creating a better working relationship with the surrounding volunteer fire departments. The fire inspector should consider the self-inspection program for businesses that have a proven track record of compliance with all fire prevention codes and regulations. Consider making a few changes in the employment application to reduce the possibility of identity theft of the candidates. 4 Training 4 Training 4 Training The department should establish certification goals and needs that best serve the needs of the SFD. The department s efforts should encourage members to seek these certifications which would be paid for by the City. Those not identified as primary certifications would not be paid for by the City. The training calendar should be more comprehensive and designate a time of day dedicated to training. Postponement or cancellation of training at that time should be limited to emergency responses only. Training material created by instructors such as PowerPoints, lesson plans, etc. should be kept in the training library for future use either as a class or individual training. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 222

223 Priority Section Recommendation Apparatus Equipment Emergency Activities Emergency Activities Emergency Activities Fire Prevention Safety Education Fire Prevention Safety Education Human Resources Human Resources National Standards National Standards National Standards We are recommending that Squad #2, a 1999 model which is the Manpower/EMS vehicle and the 2001 model School station car both be removed from the Fire Department fleet. It appears these vehicles were in the Fire Department fleet and when they were replaced with new vehicles the Fire Department just maintained them in the fleet and redesigned their purpose. The City should provide the needed resources to ensure that all departments activities data reports are accurate and can be easily validated without alteration to explain the numbers. The Fire Department should investigate the ThinkMap mapping technology which could better illustrate the exact locations of emergency incidents allowing department leadership to quantify the use of existing resources and future needs of additional resources. All parties would benefit from focusing on the opportunities for improvements and work cooperatively with other agencies to ensure a system of checks and balances is established; coupled with implementation of a data quality/assurance program. As long as the parties argue whose data is correct this opportunity will be missed. The pre-fire plans should be developed through the ESO Solutions software module incorporated in the data management system and the plans should become part of the training curriculum. The Fire Department should incorporate the NFPA and Lowe s Home Safety Council s Risk Watch Program in conjunction with the City Police and County Sheriff s Department. Evaluate the FLSA provision of sleep time if and when the City s budget becomes fiscally challenging. Consider a number of the recommendations for changes in the contract to bring a more balanced employee and City contract. The City should not adopt NFPA 1710 standard. Adoption would include the adoption of all OSHA and NFPA standards by reference included in the document. However, a plan should be developed to meet as many NFPA 1710 standards as possible in the future. The Fire Department leadership must ensure that the OSHA twoin/two-out rule is practiced on all structure fires. The Fire Department should not seek international accreditation (CPSE) at this time; rather the CPSE should be used as a guide in reviewing department operations and the types of documentation needed. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 223

224 Priority Section Recommendation 5 National Standards 5 Staffing Although NFPA standards are not mandatory, it is in the City s best interest to become aware of the components in the standards in which the Department would be held accountable in the event of a catastrophic event. The consultants would not recommend any additional staffing for the Fire Department until data collections methods improve to the status that the justification for additional staffing is available and accurate. 5 Staffing The consultants would not recommend an additional staffing for the Fire Department until the issues with allowing the granting of Kelly Days has been addressed since the number of Kelly days being provided to all members of the Fire Department now equal over six full-time positions in equivalent time worked. The issue of Kelly Days is further addressed in the Human Resources section. 5 Standard of Response All future capital expenditures should be evaluated against the SORC distribution, concentration, and reliability criteria. McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 224

225 Appendix A -Data Requested - Fire/EMS Component Show each year data separately i.e. 2012, 2013, and 2014 do not group them We request data in an electronic format on a flash drive or disk If an area does not apply simply indicate NA Do not send this information. Once collected we will meet with you on site to review it. Call if you have any questions especially before conducting hand counts General Information Overview of the department History Overview of the area protected District City/Village Population Residents of Protection Area In-flux or Out-flux of Daytime Population Department s Strategic Plan Response District Map Of Coverage Area Map Of the District Map Of Area Of Concern For Relocation Of Station Map Of Contiguous Surrounding Area Showing Department Stations Locations Total Square Miles Protected Square Miles Of Hydrant Area Square Miles Of Non-Hydrant Area Personnel Management/Human Resources Current Roster Of Members Personnel (information needed for all employees) List of members (sworn and non-sworn) Hire date Age or date of birth Organizational Chart # of Career # of Paid On Call # of Paid On Premise # of Volunteers # of Other Employees (Include civilian) McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 225

226 Rank Structure (Number Of Employees In Each Category) Current salary of each employee (name, rank, salary) Spreadsheet name, rank, current salary, (if possible, a spreadsheet with the benefit breakout -health, pension, taxes, etc. for fiscal year of the study) Labor agreement Department s By-Laws (if corporation) Police & Fire Commission or Civil Service Regulations Employee Policy & Procedure Manual (prefer electronic version) Promotional Process including forms utilized History Of Turnover (All Employees Last 3 Years Include Reason and/or Exit Interview Data) Recruiting/Retention Programs Hiring Process (all forms) Application Hiring packet Reference questions Interview questions Etc. Grievances/Discipline Issues Performance Evaluation process and forms Last year s overtime by employee include rank FLSA pay cycle (if not in contract) SOG/SOP Manual prefer electronic copy (sure to include HR policy section) ESD and/or Department Employee s Handbook New employee Orientation Process (packet and/or forms) The Department Department SOG s Department Rules & Regulations Annual Reports Last 3 Years Current ISO Rating Last ISO On-Site Evaluation (copy of point distribution sheet) Accreditations National Or State Last On Site Evaluation Others Emergency Activities Last 3 Years (All Sub-Sections) # Of Emergency Responses (NFIRS) Type of Responses: Structure Fires, Auto Accidents, Brush, Mutual Aid, Fire Alarm Systems Both Commercial &/or Residential, False, Etc. EMS Responses # of: ALS, BLS, non-emergency Transports/Transfers, etc. Incidents By Time Of Day McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 226

227 Incidents By Day Of The Week Incidents By Month Calls Breakdown by Area (City, District, Town, Etc.) Distribution by Shift Distribution by Station Response Times: (include documentation from dispatch) Notification time Turnout time Drive time Mitigation time Mutual Aid Auto Responses (Given & Received) With Whom? Copy(ies) of Written Agreement Simultaneous (Overlapping) Call Data Dispatch (PSAP) Who provides dispatch Cost Dispatch data time from receiving call to FD notification Who answers Who answers cellular # of Employees # of Shifts Staffing per Shift (minimum & maximum) EMD Program Dispatchers/Call Taker Certifications Fire Station(s) include mailing address for each station include City & Zip Current Facilities # Of Stations Street Address Square Footage (Floor Plans for each if available) Age Future Facility Plans/Needs Documents Apparatus & Equipment Type Of Apparatus (I.E. Engine, Ambulance, Utility, Truck Include Manufacturer) Apparatus department ID number Pump & Tank sizes Mileage Engine Hour Reading (if appropriate) Vehicle VIN Number Age Of Apparatus Manufacturer McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 227

228 Replacement Schedule Special Teams Apparatus Specialized Equipment: Haz Mat, Water Rescue, etc Radio, Type And Frequencies Computers (Number of, Type, Age, Replacement Plan) In Apparatus? Software Programs Training Training Records (Last 3 years) for each member Training schedule Training hours per month per employee Training Curriculum & Lesson Plan Instructors qualifications Training Manual Certifications Categories (state) Special Teams certifications All current employees certification level Fire Prevention Number of inspectable occupancies History Of Inspections & Re-Inspections (Last 3 Years) Identification of Codes Adopted Safety Education Public Safety Education Programs Public Safety Education Data (Last 3 Years) Fiscal Past three years of audited year financial statement Current year audited financial Past three years budget Operating include all revenue and expenses Capital - include all revenue and expenses Financial policies and procedures Purchasing policies Equipment or Capital reserve fund ledger Overtime records Ambulance information Ambulance revenue current year and two previous years Ambulance billing contract Copy of ambulance rates charged and authority for those rates i.e. ordinance McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 228

229 Identification of all accounts for the department Account details for each of the above accounts last three years Revenue List of grants applied for and/or received for current year and two previous years List 2% fire dues received current year and two previous years List and explanation of any other department revenue received i.e. inspections fees, permit fee, etc. Other information needed: Equalized Assessed Valuation (EAV) if multiple communities for all Resource Hospital Project Medical Director contact information Involvement level with resource hospital Breakdown of where patients are transported (3 year period) Any Additional Information Deemed Important Revised: January 2015 McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 229

230 Appendix B SFD 2014 Data Correction Process March 26, 2015 Chief, To create the ESO vs. Cad Spreadsheet that I created, I pulled a run report from ESO. I researched the operation of the CAD and worked with a knowledge of databases. I found all tables that might contain fire runs, pulled and sampled a small collection of data to determine if my suspicion was right. Finding that my suspicion was correct, I then got exports of the two major parent tables and had those exports sent to Excel. I marked each report as to where the data came from. Then, I copied the data from all three reports into a single spreadsheet. I had the spreadsheet highlight all duplicate numbers. Next, I sorted the data by CAD number, so that it could be seen that each Cad number resided in ESO and a specific CAD table. I then removed the spare data from the CAD tables, to make the document something that could actually be scrolled through. I also had the spreadsheet count the columns and numbers to verify the number of CAD numbers that had an exact duplicate. I also had it provide a count of non-duplicated number of CAD numbers just to see what did not verify against each other. I think this small number of runs contains typos or there might be another table that I might be missing. To create the overlapping runs report, I used our 4406 runs per ESO data. I built a report from ESO, to pull the CAD numbers with the corresponding time of dispatch and time of call completion. I then exported that data to an Excel spreadsheet. In Excel, I wrote a formula that said to look at the dispatch time of a run, then look at the call completion time of the previous run. If the dispatch time of the call is less than the call completed time of the previous run, the computer recognized that it was an overlapping time, and it inserted the word overlapping. If the inverse was true, it inserted the word typical. From there, I wrote another formula that searched the column with the words typical and overlapping. If the word overlapping existed it added a 1, if the word typical was there it inserted a 0. At the end of that column, I inserted a sum calculated by the computer, thus all the number ones add up to the total overlapping calls. My Shelbyville Fire pageout table is the result of contacting the Nixle Company and asking that they pull a report from their database of all pages sent from the S.F.D. account. From there, I simply removed any pageout that was not about overtime or backfill. This was a function that I had to manually, since I could not find value to ask the spreadsheet to automatically handle. To create a true an accurate document, which shows how many responses were dispatched in each station geographic response area, regardless of which apparatus took the run; I again took our 2014 ESO data, exported the response address to an excel spreadsheet, then imported that spreadsheet into our ThinkGis system. Once in GIS, I had GIS plot those locations to the county map. Due to typos and the way the two programs store information, there will be a small margin of errors in this report. However, based on the number of runs which were plottable, the margin will be less than 5%. From there, I was able to search the appropriate E.S.N. layer for the number of responses within that E.S.N. For the Consultants, an E.S.N. is the layer of the map which contains the geographic area covered by all emergency services in the county. Each service has specific geozones within the layer. After pulling each station's response addresses by McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 230

231 geozone, I then simply had the spreadsheet count the number of entries per geozone. This document is labeled ThinkMap Plotted Data. In addition to ThinkMap plotted data, I went in to ESO and pulled the number of responses by apparatus to show how many runs each department apparatus took. This number does and should add up to a total larger than 4406 as many calls get more than one apparatus. This apparatus response report reflects the actual number of calls taken by each apparatus, and shows all corresponding cad number responses to substantiate the total call volume for each truck. While I was in ThinkMap pulling data, I also created a datasheet pulling runs from the E.S.N. at the Casino and immediately adjacent to that building in the small geographic area associated with the casino annexation. This report is labeled as Northwest area. Shane Scott McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 231

232 Appendix C PSAP 2014 Data Correction Process The PSAP provided 12 months of revised data in which they believe they were able to come within 45 calls of that provided by the fire department. One month sheet is illustrated below: Figure 36: PSAP Correction May 2014 FD Calls Pag McGrath Consulting Group, Inc. Page 232