Several days after a Nov. 7 blaze at Olympia Place in Amherst, Massachusetts, was contained, union fire fighters are calling on town management to fully staff the department.
The fire, which destroyed an apartment complex and displaced 232 people, "tested the limits of the Amherst Fire Department," the union fire fighters said in a statement.
When the fire was first called in, "initial reports were dire, citing a building fully involved with explosions heard," the statement said. Despite the severity, "the Amherst Fire Department’s initial response was immediately strained," as staff were deployed on other calls.
Due to the heavy fire load, the sheer size of the incident, and a limited water supply, fire fighters said the blaze quickly consumed an apartment building adjacent to the initial fire.
"This incident serves as a critical warning, as our town includes numerous high-occupancy structures," they said.
As additional alarms went out last week, fire departments from around western Massachusetts responded to help. But the town of Amherst can't consistently deplete on mutual aid fire fighters said.
"We are once again calling on Mr. [Paul] Bockelman and the Town Council to immediately stop gambling with resident safety and finally make the Amherst Fire Department a priority by adding an additional 18 career firefighters to the department - bringing the department in line with national average staffing levels. "
Amherst Town Manager Paul Bockelman said in an email to NEPM, public safety remains "one of the town's highest priorities," adding that recent town investments include $2 million for two new fire trucks and the addition of four firefighter positions.
Bockelman acknowledged that an open fire fighter position is "frozen" in the current budget.
Town officials plan an analysis of how the Olympia Place fire was responded to, Bockelman said. He said he also plans to review all department staffing levels in the coming months.
The town's union firefighters have advocated in past years for additional staffing to serve the town and the university, based on recommendations from the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA).
For a fire at Olympia Place, that's a minimum of 28 firefighters for "the initial response to a fire of this size," the fire fighter union statement said.
