I hereby submit the following report in accordance with Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 48, Section 42:

The Southborough Fire Department responded to 1,191 emergency calls in 2006.  This number represents a decrease of 89 emergency responses compared to 2005. Additionally, the Department conducted 802 inspections, plan reviews and public education programs.

The following is a breakdown of the emergency responses:

                        Fire and Emergency Responses                                      490

                        Medical Emergencies and Motor Vehicle Accidents       701

The Department is comprised of the following personnel:

·        1 Full-time Fire Chief

·        1 Administrative Secretary/Dispatcher (32 hours/week)

·        19 full-time Firefighter/Emergency Medical Technicians (EMT’s)

·        5 Call Firefighter/EMT’s

·        6 Call Firefighters

·        3 EMT’s

·        1 Safety Officer

·        1 Chaplain

It is important to note that 95% of the Full-Time members, and 24% of the on-call members live outside of Southborough.  This results in longer response times for fire apparatus that requires off-duty and call personnel to drive.

The following personnel changes occurred in 2006:

            New members:

·        Firefighter/EMT-Paramedic Ryan Cringan (replaced FF/EMT-P Nathan Jarvi)

·        Firefighter/EMT-Basic Derek Hirons (replaced FF/EMT-P David Cobb)

Members that resigned from the Department:

·        FF/EMT-Paramedic David Cobb

·        Call Firefighter Charles Brewer

Call Firefighter Charles Brewer retired from the Department after service 32 years of dedicated service. Charlie served from 1963 to 1977, at which time he moved out of state. Upon moving back to Massachusetts in 1988, Charlie rejoined the Department in 1988. Charlie was a very dedicated member of the Department volunteering thousands of hours responding to emergency calls all hours of the day and night. Charlie is one of the last of the truly dedicated volunteers to serve the citizens of Southborough. Best of luck on your retirement Charlie!

Four, 42-hour work shifts are required to cover the 168 hours in each week in order to provide fire, rescue, and emergency medical services 24/7.  A minimum of four FF/EMTs are assigned to Headquarters per shift.  Due to collective bargaining agreement requirements, there are two shifts with five personnel, and two shifts with four.  This staffing is still below the 2000 Fire and Police Staffing, Equipment and Facilities Study recommendation of six per shift.   Full-time firefighters are augmented by an on-call staff.  The current staffing configuration allows us to adequately handle a majority of the routine emergency calls; however, major incidents and multiple calls occurring simultaneously place a serious strain on our response capabilities and require the recall of all off duty and on-call personnel, as well as the use of mutual aid.  Any reduction in staffing would greatly impact the services which we provide the residents of Southborough.

The Southborough Fire Department received a 2004 Federal Fire Act Grant in 2005 to install a direct-connect vehicle exhaust removal system at Fire Headquarters. This system was installed in 2006. The Department also received a 2006 Federal Fire Act Grant in November. This grant will be used to purchase 20 replacement Self Contained Breathing Apparatus cylinders that are reaching the end of their serviceable life of 15 years, a replacement breathing air compressor, as well as 20 sets of firefighting turn-out gear. The total grant is in the amount of $88,350. An additional 5% matching component is being provided by a local donor. These items contained within the grant were contained within the Fire Department Capital Plan for replacement in fiscal year 2008. Thanks to the grant and donation the Southborough Taxpayer will not have to fund these items. 

The Department requested, and was granted a Reserve Fund transfer in the amount of $50,477.86 to supplement the FY06 Fire/EMS/Rescue budget. This request was based upon several unanticipated events which required additional expenses above and beyond what was budgeted.

Firefighter/EMTs Peter J. Phaneuf, Matthew Rice, David Wills and Derek Hirons all completed intense paramedic training. Congratulations to all members for their hard work and dedication. Firefighters Rice, Wills and Hirons have received their paramedic certification from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts . This brings the total number of Firefighter/Paramedics to 11. The Department is still operating under a Paramedic/Basic EMT waiver from the state Office of Emergency Medical Services (OEMS).

Once again, the members of the Southborough Firefighters Association sponsored the annual Children’s Halloween Party, as well as presented scholarships to local high school seniors.  Members of the Department under the direction of Susan Chorey worked with the Southborough Family & Youth Services and the Salvation Army of Framingham to collect toys for the less fortunate during the holiday season.  Thank you for your support.

FIRE PREVENTION/PUBLIC EDUCATION DIVISION

(Captain Joseph C. Mauro, Fire Prevention/Public Education Officer)

·        A total of 862 inspections, plan reviews and public education programs were conducted in 2006. This represents an increase of 60 over 2005. The following is a breakdown of inspections:     

           109                  26F Smoke detector (home resale) inspections

             12                       26F Re-inspection

             42                   26B Smoke detector (new home) inspections

               9                   26B Re-inspection

           117                  26 ½  Carbon Monoxide Inspections

            11                       26 ½ Re-inspections  

             57                 Oil burner inspections

               4                       Oil burner re-inspections

             28                 Propane inspections

               0                   House number re-inspections

             37                 School inspections and fire drills

             35                 Annual town license renewal inspections

             45                 Commercial building inspections

             32                   Tank Truck inspections 527CMR 8.00

  1                    Pre-blast survey

               3                    Blast Observations

             12                  Underground Tank removal observation

             16                  Misc. safety inspections (insurance, etc.)

             23                    Complaints Investigated

               7                  License Renewal Follow-up Inspections

             14                  Follow-up Inspections

              0                    Unvented Heater Inspection

            10                    In-service Inspection

              5                   Underground Storage Tank Installations                  

·        The following programs were presented to the public:

           57                   School Fire Prevention programs

           16                   Misc. Fire and Safety Programs

           21                   Fire Station tours for groups

·        The number of plans reviewed were as follows:

           75                   Residential Smoke Detector plans (new 

                            Construction & renovation)

           40                   Commercial plans (new construction, fire

                            Alarm, sprinkler, site plans, etc.) 

           12                    Site Plans Reviewed

           12                      Construction Meetings/Inspections

FIRE PREVENTION PROGRAMS PRESENTED

·        The National Fire Protection Association’s Learn Not to Burn curriculum was once again presented to the kindergarten and first grade classes at the Finn School . This program was presented in 4 separate modules throughout the school year. The students were presented with information such as match and lighter safety, stop-drop-roll, and crawling in smoke. The final module involved bringing the department smoke trailer to the school and demonstrating the effects of smoke in a burning house. The students were also given the opportunity to have some fun by using a fire hose to extinguish a mock fire in a prop constructed of plywood.

·        The annual Fire Department Open House was held on Heritage Day this year to coincide with the Heritage Day activities.  The fire department was open to the public with many activities for the kids as well as interactive demonstrations for the public.  This year Heritage Day coincided with National Fire Prevention Week and this years theme was cooking safety Watch What You Heat.  A small prop was constructed by the firefighters and a demonstration of various cooking hazards were shown ending with a demonstration of the effects of a kitchen fire.  There was also a demonstration in the use of the “Jaws of Life” and to coincide with that a demonstration to the citizen of the Paramedic level of Emergency Medical Care that is provided by the Southborough Fire Department.

·        Several fire safety presentations were delivered throughout the year and included presentations to the faculty of the New England Center for Children, Southborough Senior Citizens, the cub scouts and various pre-schools. A 3-hour program was once again successfully delivered to the students and faculty of St. Mark’s and Fay School in September and involved awareness about dorm fire safety practices. The program included an interactive demonstration of common fire hazards and ways to prevent fire incidences from occurring.  Since the program was first presented 4 years ago, the number of accidental fires caused by the residential boarders at St. Mark’s, as well as Fay School , has been zero. 

·        In the spring of 2006 the Fire Chief was contacted by Matt Rosetti who was working toward his Eagle Scout and was looking for a project to complete his requirement.  After thinking of what he could do to aid the department the idea of making a dorm fire safety video for seniors in high school who would be going to college was decided on.  The project included Matt and his friends filming skits relating to various dorm fire hazards.  The second part of the project was to construct a mock dorm room that was burned by with the assistance of the Fire Department to show the devastation that can when a fire occurs in a dorm.  The prop was constructed of wood frame and sheet rock and was decorated by Matt his and friends to make it look like a typical dorm room found in any college environment.  His project was completed in December with copies of the video made available to the department.  This will be used when and distributed to students when conducting our dorm fire safety program for St Mark’s and Fay School .  

PLAN REVIEWS, INSPECTIONS, and FIRE INVESTIGATIONS

·        For the second straight year the number of inspections for new residential houses as well as existing houses has declined.  Due to the economic climate and rising interest rates, the number of new homes and resale of existing homes has declined. The number of commercial inspection of new and renovated occupancies remained consistent with new buildings being completed during the year.

·        In March of this year a new law was passed requiring carbon monoxide detectors to be installed in all residential occupancies in Massachusetts .  The enforcement of this law is similar to the smoke detector law which requires an inspection for the installation of these devices upon sale or transfer of a property.  The law also required other residential occupancies such as dormitories to have CO detectors installed but had until January 1, 2007 to comply for an alternative compliance option. 

EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES DIVISION

(Firefighter/EMT-Paramedic Kenneth Strong, EMS Coordinator)

Dr. Taryn Kennedy, Director of Emergency Services at Marlborough Hospital , continues to provide oversight and support to the Department. Within her role as Medical Director to the department she presents Quarterly Morbidity or Mortality rounds for the EMT's, and the Doctor is actively involved in training and the Quality Assurance/Quality Improvement program.

The Departments two ambulances are fully equipped with cardiac monitors that have 12 lead ECG capabilities. This allows the Paramedics to confirm an acute myocardial infarction and notify the receiving hospital. The ambulances are equipped with 30 Advanced Life Support (ALS) medications that the Paramedics can administer. Each ambulance is equipped with Epi-pen auto injectors used by EMT's for acute allergic reactions/anaphylactic reactions. Semi-Automatic defibrillators are carried on all front line fire apparatus.

Currently the Department has 11 Paramedics, 9 EMT-intermediates, and 9 Basic level EMT's.  This year we had 3 members upgrade their status to Paramedic. Those members are FF/EMT-P David wills, FF/EMT-P Matthew Rice, FF/EMT-P Derek Hirons. These members worked very hard to become Paramedics. Congratulations to you all!

The following is a list of classes approved by the Office of Emergency Medical Services and held at the Department during 2006.

•           3 hour-Morbidity and Mortality rounds (held quarterly). 12 hours

•           Environmental emergencies 3 hours

•           24 hour DOT EMT refresher

•           12 hour EMT-Intermediate refresher

•           Paramedic assistant 4 hours

•           Protocol update class 3 hours

•           Total of 58 classroom hours.

Members of the department utilize our numerous training aides. The department has a very expensive/dynamic manikin that can mimic traumatic and medical scenarios. This manikin allows the advanced providers the opportunity to hone skills that are not practiced on a daily basis such as – needle cricothyroidotomy, needle chest decompression, difficult intubations, and use of the Combitube rescue airway.

TRAINING DIVISION

(Lieutenant/EMT-Paramedic Christian P. Dano, Lt. James P. Peltier)

Throughout the year of 2006, the department held training sessions ranging from three to eight- hour training days for all full-time and call firefighters.  Due to budget constraints, the number of training hours in 2006 was reduced. These training sessions are extremely important to maintain the skill level of the firefighters and EMTs and to ensure that we are ready for any type of emergency.  The following subjects were covered this year:

·        January - After Action Review of a structure fire on Turnpike Road , Motor vehicle crashes on Northborough Road and the Massachusetts Turnpike & Mass Fire Academy Structural Hazards.

·        January – CPR training for all call personnel.

·        February – Department Standard Operating Guideline and Rules and Regulations Review

·        February – Rapid Intervention Training

·        March – Rapid Intervention Training (continued)

·        May – Flashover Simulator Training

The Southborough Fire Department has also continued with in-service training which is designed for the full-time staff to accomplish during their shift.  Hundreds of hours of training were completed this year.  The topics can range on anything that has to do with the fire service, equipment used by the department, learning street and hydrant locations, rules and regulations of the department, etc.

Certified Thomas Hogan on all apparatus

• Pumps and Hydraulics
• Ladder pipe set up and operations
• Tour of N-star facility
• Monthly EMS skills Maintenance training
• Driving simulator thru MIIA
• Water supply and sprinkler operations
• Street and district awareness
• Hovercraft and water rescue
• Vehicle extrication
• SCBA emergencies
• Ropes/knots and tying and hauling
• Foam operations
• Ground ladders
• Rapid Intervention Team Operations
• Building orientation district 16
• Railroad safety

Many of the full-time firefighters have been furthering their education by attending paramedic school, working toward degrees, and certification classes through the Massachusetts Firefighting Academy or other agencies both on, and off-duty.

·        FF/EMT-I Neal Aspesi – Vehicle Fire Investigation, Tunnel Collapse Operations, MIIA Emergency Driver Training Simulator.

·        FF/EMT-P Ryan Cringan– Firefighter I/II, Flashover Simulator Training

·        LT/EMT-P Christian Dano- MIIA Emergency Driver Training Simulator, Flashover Simulator Training

·        FF/EMT-I Kenneth Franks, III – Structural Collapse Rescue Refresher, Trench Rescue Refresher, High Angle Rope Rescue Refresher, Basic Confined Space Rescue, Health & Safety Officer

·        FF/EMT-P Derek Hirons – Completed EMT-Paramedic training, Flashover Simulator Training

·        Capt./EMT-I Joseph Hubley - MIIA Emergency Driver Simulator Training

·        FF/EMT-I Robert Kane – Fire Officer Supervisory Training, Flashover Simulator Training, MIIA Emergency Driver Simulator Training

·        Capt./EMT Joseph Mauro- Flashover Simulator Training, MIIA Emergency Vehicle Driver Simulator Training

·        LT/EMT-I James Peltier- Flashover Simulator Training, MIIA Emergency Vehicle Driver Simulator Training

·        FF/EMT-I Peter Phaneuf- Flashover Simulator Training, Completed EMT-Paramedic Course

·        FF/EMT-P Paul Pierce- MIIA Emergency Driver Simulator Training

·        FF/EMT-P Matthew Rice – MIIA Emergency Driver Simulator Training, Completed EMT-Paramedic Training

·        FF/EMT-P Victor Robidoux – MIIA Emergency Driver Simulator Training

·        FF/EMT-P Christopher Shanahan-  Flashover Simulator Training, MIIA Emergency Vehicle Driver Simulator Training

·        FF/EMT-P Kenneth Strong - Flashover Simulator Training, MIIA Emergency Vehicle Driver Simulator Training

·        FF/EMT-P David Wills - Flashover Simulator Training, MIIA Emergency Vehicle Driver Simulator Training, Completed EMT-Paramedic Training, Completed the Massachusetts Firefighting Academy 12-week Basic Recruit Training

SENIOR CITIZEN LIAISON and CPR COORDINATOR

(Lieutenant/EMT-Paramedic Christian P. Dano)

Senior citizens are considered an “at risk” population regarding fire and life safety. As such, the Southborough Fire/EMS/Rescue department works closely with seniors on fire and life safety concerns. The following is a recap of services provided in 2006:

• Recertified Senior Center staff in First aid and CPR
• Worked with the elderly public about the “File of Life” program.
• Attended Senior Center cook out to be introduced to the seniors.
• Working on starting a shuttle service for elderly to be able to vote and attend town meetings without having to worry about driving.
• Met with Cindy Beards regarding resident at 50 Turnpike Road and not having any heat.
• Followed up with heating problem at 50 Turnpike Road it was resolved.
• Obtained special outside services for elderly women on Ted Land
• Worked on smoke detector and battery replacement for senior residents. Targeted those living alone whose housing may not have the appropriate smoke and carbon monoxide detectors.

As the Department’s CPR coordinator, the following programs were conducted:

• One class per month is provided to the citizens of Southborough
• Provided CPR Recertification for the Recreation Department
• Provided CPR Recertification to the employees of Southborough Dental Associates
• Taught first aid to the Southborough Little League coaches
• Provided CPR Recertification to the staff of Here We Grow Day Care Center

CONCLUSION

I would like to thank all of the members of the Southborough Fire Department and their families for the dedicated service that they provide to you, the citizens of Southborough. I would also like to thank the members of the Board of Selectmen, all of the Town’s Department heads and Town Boards and Committees for their continued cooperation, assistance and support. 

The residents and businesses of Southborough are a constant source of donations of time, material and/or funds to aid us in serving the citizens and visitors of Southborough.  Thank you very much for your valuable contributions!

Please visit our web site for continuous updated department and safety information: www.southboroughfire.org.

Respectfully Submitted,

John D. Mauro, Jr.,

Fire Chief