13,882
Medical Calls
1,089
Fires
4,371
Public Assists
155
Responders
This week on Pensacola Beach, County Fire Tactics is presenting a week long "Officer Development Course" for firefighters, officers, and chiefs from all around the country. This is one of the many programs brought to our local beach by Local 4131 member Brother Isakson, allowing world class training at a local option.
Pictured are members of Local 4131 attending leadership and tactical training. Thank you to the local businesses that offer discounts during this tourist off season for our visiting firefighters from around the country during this training.
www.facebook.com/1523503787903274/posts/2469512639969046/?sfnsn=mo20 Members Of Escambia County Fire Rescue attending the CFT ODP On Pensacola Beach.
Thank You for your service!
Impressive
Wow!
"What will it take?"
Firefighters are expected to be flexible in making life changing decisions on the fly. Today, Engine 17 and Ladder 12 were initially dispatched to a commercial vehicle fire. Battalion 2 arrived with multiple vehicles on fire and multiple exposured buildings. Quick reactions by the initial companies helped save surrounding homes and vehicles, but as the FACTS on this page have said before, another breakdown of an engine while trying to assist and help those already on scene. The fire was sent to a second alarm, calling in more resources due to low staffing also.
No injuries reported and the State Fire Marshal has ruled the cause as an arson.
Maybe 2020 will bring a boost to morale, pay, and equipment for all of ECFR firefighters.
www.facebook.com/72274029346/posts/10157824893059347/
lets hope so. thank you for all you do
Should we ask, WHO will it take? Who else do the Citizens need to pull in? The Commissioners seem to suffer a gambling addiction that impairs their sense of reasoning. go higher
Stop running these apparatus to workout at the gym, stop going to the grocery store. And most of all park all, bat chief cruisers but the 3 being used for shift dury at the scene or in district but the others should be parked at fire admin and not be used to go home for the night
What needs to be done? You guys seem to be going a decent job telling your story on FB, but is it helping the outcome? What does the community need to do to protect each other? I think at this point you have to lead and provide explicit direction to the citizens.
Happy New Year to all!
Yes. Please be careful out there. My husband is a firefighter and medic. And my daughter is a advanced as well. Be sure you do your part to make sure they come home safely tonight.
Praying for safety for you all.
Take care and be safe. Paco
"What will it take?"
For those wanting proof of the "No EMS units available" post from earlier. This happens on a DAILY basis.
Happens in okaloosa as well. On top of that ambulances will drop to BLS.
Sounds like Escambia EMS .. needs to rethink a mutual aid .. Baldwin county Al. ( medstar ) and Santa Rosa county Fl. ( life guard ) both department could help with the north and south ends of the county !!
Thank you for posting actual documentation. Can you please also post now how long those particular calls were held?
I had a medical emergency on a school bus quite a few years ago. A high school student having seizures from smoking spice. Not only did they continue to divert ambulances to other calls, they did not dispatch fire to assist me. I ended up with 3 county deputies. A couple hours later I did have an ambulance respond.
Was this Christmas morning too?
This is awful that this is honestly something that happens. I’m not going to pretend that I am well versed in EMS but sometimes I wonder if the unnecessary calls to EMS has anything to do with this. On a side note, Melissa, do you realize what an asshole you sound like? Just curious 🤷🏼♀️
It's a pure shame that people require the written proof of this when they could simply buy a cheap scanner and listen with their own ears!!! Perhaps they just want their fifteen minutes of fame on FB. #bearealjournalist
It is because there are not enough ambulances or is it because there are not enough workers? I know first responders don't get paid enough for the jobs they do. How can they expect people to live off of $25,000 a year risking their lives everyday?
Common problem across the country. Sad!
The county EMS needs to get out of the routine transfer business and stick to 911 responses.
I have my application in for Escambia, I know there are plenty of trucks especially at 05:50. Waiting to be put to work.
Audrey this is the page I was talking about the other day.
Lipstick on a pig ! Sinking ship
But they've been coughing for 2 weeks and it's an emergency
This is an important issue and a national topic of debate. It's disingenuous to position this as if it's just Escambia County sorting through solutions. www.dallasnews.com/news/2019/08/06/dallas-ambulance-response-times-lag-far-behind-national-standard/
"What will it take?"
Currently, "EMS Has no units" is being told to fire trucks running calls all over Escambia County. What does that mean? If you call 911 for a medical emergency, only a fire truck will be able to respond.
You read that right. 660 square miles, 300,000 population, and no available ambulances.
Why do fire trucks break down so often? Why is there no focus on Public Safety? Great questions that go unanswered.
This is unacceptable. What happens when there is a fire and the closest truck is sitting with a stable, low priority patient?
This is part of the multi faceted approach to fixing Public Safety, not taking money from the EMS reserve budget to spend on campaign contributors pet projects.
Edit: This is not nor will these post ever be against the line personnel. They brothers and sisters are overworked and underpaid day after day, giving their all for Escambia County communities. This is a highlight of perpetual problem of not addressing Public Safety when, for years, the statistics and facts have been presented without a fix. Please contact your BoCC Commisioner to express your support for doing what it takes to fix our broken Public Safety System.
I'm a retired firefighter/paramedic from another Florida county, but I live in Escambia. What, specifically, can we, as citizens, do to address the problem and support ECPF and public safety?
What Commissioners are responsible for voting on this? Our county commissioners? Can you provide a list of those commissioners and where they represent so everyone can reach out to them?
I want my firefighters, EMTs, and paramedics to be paid and staffed well! I want them rested and not burned out. I want clear heads and happy hearts coming to my rescue. Getting them the resources they need has always been a problem. It happens everywhere. This is fixable here. Let's fix this! Contact your Escambia County Commissioners. Let them know that EMS needs more staff, that you want them to fund the fire department completely, and allow department heads to make plans for the future. Tell them you are concerned for you and your family's safety. Not sure who your commissioner is? You can look it up here: myescambia.com/elected-officials/commissioners
@ Escambia County Professional Firefighters. How is that even possible??? We have a total of 30 units. 27 of those are internationals and 3 of those are Ford EMS are Station in the Northern county. Matter of fact we just received 3 brand new internationals. And just shipped off 3 to be Refurbished.
Nick Gradia "EMS Has no units" is being told to fire trucks running calls all over Escambia County. Where is the documentation on this? Understand that I can imagine this might very well be the case. We need more ambulances, but more than that we're coming to a crisis with our paramedic staffing. But just throwing this up as fact is pretty irresponsible. If this is really happening, people have the right to proof.
The government should only do what can't be done by the private sector. Public Safety and Infrastructure must go hand in hand. We could lighten the load on EMS if a private sector provider just handled transports in between hospitals and remote urgent care facilities.
$10.50 an hour? Did I read that right? Sorry maybe I was reading this McDonalds ad by mistake.
Local county officials must be reminded the REAL REASONS counties are formed. Public Safety is one of the MAIN reasons period!!
How are there NO Ambulances available...? Is it due to holidays and everyone took off or what...?
This happened to us a few years ago. A ems suv came with an emt, not paramedic who called in my Dads symptoms. He had been on the floor for an undetermined amount of time, possibly days. He was barely able to talk, disoriented to place & time. We waited over an hour for an ambulance! Absolutely freakin unacceptable!
This is an EMS problem. Lack of staffing to keep enough vehicles on the roads to manage the call load. Sure you have plenty of ambulances sitting over there but not enough people to ride them for the required shifts. Someone seems to think everything is ECFR’s fault. Staffing is always going to be an issue in Escambia County because of the pay.
I support our Escambia County Firefighters.. hard & challenging work, and they do it with class & professionalism.
Sounds like a good place for a private ambulance company to move in!
Happens in okaloosa as well. Theyll also drop ambulances to BLS.
10-75, holding 911 calls, has been plaguing Escambia County EMS for > 30 years now
I agree that transport calls should not be a priority.
The commission is still "looking in to it". This is both sad and frightening.
I see you've hit me up with a couple more notifications Escambia County Professional Firefighters, but it's not worth my time to comb through the below and find exactly where the new posts are. Pointless to keep engaging on this string with people who refuse to be honest. Thankfully, your taunting citizens to put in public records requests will probably result in just that happening. Maybe union lead salaries will be one of those records. And for the record, I haven't put in a thing. I turned over everything I had a long time ago. I called Public Safety yesterday to pull records on the on hold calls; I was told that it had already come down from Administration for them to provide the numbers. So Ms. Gilley I'm sure will be taking a look at all of it, along with all the commentary on this site. In the end, her opinion is the most important concerning these issues. That, and the results of the investigations.
The C Word.... Consolidation of Public Safety. One Chief.. One Budget
I just saw 4 going down Fairfield how are there none available
Get rid of the fire commissioners and start fresh
So what can we do to fix it? Do I need to run for local office to fix it from the inside?
When I am getting notifications for this page, it just takes me to OP. I'm tired of running through the string and really it's not necessary. If anybody on this string wants to know what this Fire union is up to, you can contact me at melissawpino@gmail.com There's a reason Nick and Scott are this hysterical.
The issue is how many delays are related to non emergent medical calls, often non urgent either.
The IAFF Center of Excellence for Behavioral Health Treatment and Recovery is a one-of-a-kind addiction treatment facility specializing in PTSD for IAFF members – and IAFF members only – who are struggling with addiction, PTSD other related behavioral health challenges to receive the help they need in taking the first steps toward recovery. It is a safe haven for members to talk with other members who have faced or overcome similar challenges.
Local 4131 is home to 154 members of Escambia County Fire Rescue (ECFR) located in Pensacola, Floirda.
Escambia County covers 662 square miles and is the Western most County in Florida. A resident population of nearly 400,000 people with an average annual tourist load of over 4,000,000 people. ECFR runs nearly 17,000 calls a year and provides everything from fire suppression to ocean rescue and non-transport ALS.