Marshfield to hire three additional firefighter-paramedics
By Hub City Times staff
MARSHFIELD – Marshfield aldermen have signed off on the addition of three new firefighter paramedics for the city’s Fire and Rescue Department. The Marshfield Common Council voted 10-0 last night in favor of the additions, after the city’s Police and Fire Commission had given its approval in September.
With call volumes up by 9 percent, Fire Chief Scott Owen told Mayor Bob McManus the additional staff members are badly needed.
“Right now our shifts are comprised of 11 individuals, and our minimum manning is typically eight or nine – it depends if the shift deputy chief is off,” Owen said.
“If two people are away on a rescue, that leaves six people for the rest of the city,” Mayor Bob McManus.
Owen said that the funding for the added firefighters will come out of the EMS Enterprise Fund, funded from user fees, contracts, and state aids, with no tax dollars used.
“Even if we have firefighters who are under fire protection come in for an ambulance stand by, it all comes out of that EMS fund,” he added.
Call volumes are up, mainly because of the department’s recent contract with the Marshfield Medical Center, to provide ground transport services. Marshfield Fire & Rescue also has contracts with 13 surrounding towns and villages, and its fees from those contracts will help pay for the additional staff members.
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