Still don’t have any answers to what the multitudes of staff actually do.

I guess it’s true, nobody really knows.

I have tired to get answers, the current board has tried to get answers. All we hear is if SFD has cuts, lives and property will be lost. SFD needs to justify EVERY position. It’s not micromanagement, it’s business.

If you want comparisons, let’s compare to Jerome, AZ. A nearby tourist town, lots of hills and small streets. One paid person, the Chief. Everyone else is a volunteer, they get paid per call, when they show up for a fire and then paid only once a year. Yes, Verde Valley Ambulance services as their ambulance, they also service Cottonwood and Clarkdale. Jerome has oddly enough not burned to the ground, and 85% of SFD calls are medical.

I am not asking to match Jerome. I am asking for sanity in the budget.

A few answers would be nice. Perhaps I will hear from SFD Captain.

I probably know more about SFD than most of the staff. My wife worked at SFD as a supervisor for over 7 years, even she does not know what some of the above mentioned people do.

Thanks for your reply.

Many of the questions you ask make sense and as a taxpayer myself I don’t want to see money wasted. Unfortunately this back forth between you and and the rest will never be productive. The questions you have are better answered in person. Please go to any SFD fire station and talk with any firefighter. We are all well versed on the reasoning of the staffing plan as we developed it with management. Ask to talk with a firefighter if you don’t think you will get a straight answer from management. Many of the numbers you are providing are inaccurate. I would hope that SFD updates it’s website soon, that would help clear up some confusion.

On a personal note.

I will never get rich being a fireman I know this and so does my family. I love my job and for the most part the community appreciates the work I do. It seems a fair trade that Sedona citizens get prompt and professional fire and EMS protection for the taxes they pay. I bet many spend more on coffee in a year than they do on SFD taxes but I digress.

You say that those who answer the calls have nothing to fear but I have a hard time with that since I have not had a raise in 4 years and my benefits have been slashed. I question your true motives in the nature of your questions.

I encourage you to do a ride along with one of the stations. Maybe nothing happens that day, maybe you watch someone’s life change profoundly (usually for the worse in this business). Either way I think you will come away with a clearer picture of public safety.

Respectfully,
Just one Firefighter.

Thank you for your intelligent and informational reply.

I am in agreement with most of what you said. I also agree with your span of control, you said “I on the other hand am a Captain you hear of, I over see 5-7 personnel depending on staffing.” Lets say you average 6 personnel. A total of 54 firefighters, EMS and engineers are on the SFD payroll. If each Captain supervises 6, SFD would need 9 captains. SFD has 15 Captains. What are the other 6 doing?

You may not know this, but what does the IT department do?

What do the 5 people in accounting do when payroll is done by ADP and and timekeeping by telestaff?

I’m hoping the Chief, assistant Chief, chiefs management assistant and the 4 Battalion Chiefs actually do something. What do the two civilian administration do? Could what they do be done by a uniformed staff?

The following two employees were making $100,000 plus.

Terry Schleizer, 911 center manager has been gone for a year, her position was merged with a supervisor, does anyone miss her?

What did Karen Daines do, her position is now unfilled, does anyone miss her?

I don’t mean to pick on the line personnel who actually do the job. But when I hear my taxes need to increase, I want to know everyone is working. I have spoken to some board members, they could not get information to satisfy them from either Hazime, or interim Chief Keller as to what these people do exactly. Sure, here is where they work, what do they do every day? Then the board and myself are accused going where they have no knowledge and micromanaging.

Still, what do these people do?

Hazime, Cooperman and Schoen all just want to raise the tax rate and add more staff. I want everyone who is paid to work efficiently.

I really appreciate your reply.

Thank You.

You have not suppled any facts only silly statistics which have been manipulated to support your anger at SFD. I know that none of this will dissuade you from you continued barrage against the people you will call on one day in your time of emergency. I do look forward to you complaining in future board meetings to the newly elected board of Cooperman, Hazime and Schoen.

I unfortunately never get to see them as much as I would like during our shift because most of the time they are working on there special projects to keep the day to day logistics of maintaining SFD operating. Stop buy the Fire House and talk with one. Unfortunately the list is too long to write what they do hear.

I on the other hand am a Captain you hear of, I over see 5-7 personnel depending on staffing. I have had the privilege to work in the fire service for both adequately staffed and under staff organizations. Understaffed organizations are inherently dangerous to both the firefighter and the public they serve. Needing to run from task to task on the fire ground not sure if the other assignments are being handled is not a safe feeling; SFD at times being one of them.

Several Incidents ring out during those times that I nearly lost my life, ( Who was watching our back, There was no overall Command presence tactically making decisions) I know to you this must be a myopic viewpoint supervising up to 50 people at a time but we know the truth ( that isn’t supervision ). We call it freelancing in our world, and it gets people hurt.

As to our Fire Engineers and I don’t want to downplay there role at all. A good Engineer will always safe your bacon in a sticky spot, but they do not over see anyone. All you need to do is look at there Job Description. They Drive and operate the Apparatus and perform all firefighter’s responsibilities. I don’t feel it is necessary to list all there job function I feel you get my Point.

Firefighters on the other hand are the manpower. They perform all task assigned along side there fellow counterparts – our Captains and Engineers. All are needed, but only one can be in charge with the overall operation of the emergency scene. Remember in our world someone is always responsible, we have a word in the fire service (Vicarious Liability) and it lands on the Company Officers chest when things don’t get done. Every Fire department operates this way, even Volunteer.

I know you don’t believe me but yes I was a volunteer at SFD before I was hired and every piece of apparatus had a Volunteer Captain assigned to it not just one captain per station like it is now. Back then I didn’t know who was in charge on an Incident now that was scary. We received a lot of countermanded orders (that means everyone had a different plan and no real work was being done! Ouch!)

I hope this sheds some light to our fellow readers and please stop in any of your Fire Houses. We would be glad to meet you so you can learn first hand what goes on at SFD outside the Blog-O-Sphere. We are not as bad as portrayed by some, I promise!

Wikipedia

“A platoon is a military unit typically composed of two – four sections or squads and containing 16 to 50 soldiers. Platoons are organized into a company, which typically consists of three, four or five platoons. A platoon is typically the smallest military unit led by a commissioned officer—the platoon leader or platoon commander, usually a lieutenant. He is usually assisted by a senior non-commissioned officer—the platoon sergeant.”

Sedona FD span of control…. If you count the administration and support according to the SFD website 28, 19 Chiefs, Captains etc you have 47, actual engineers, EMT’s and firefighters 54. So 47 Admin to 54 workers. Not quite 1 to 1 but damn close.

The 911 center has 1 Supervisor to every 1.8 com specs.

These are all numbers form Sedonafire.org. The military, I would agree life and death as you say, 16 men to one officer and a sergeant, so 8 to 1. My union experience 45-50 to one supervisor. Sedona Fire at most 2 workers to 1 admin/ supervisor? Yet you tell me these are highly trained professionals. I only ask the voters to use their common sense and support the current board.

The more you argue, the more you make absurd and insulting accusations, the more facts I put out and the worse those spewing absurdities look.

Thank you. Have a nice day.