Photo by David PollanThe Magnolia Volunteer Fire Department has added a new ladder truck and fire engine to its fleet and is in the process of hiring a contractor to build three new fire stations as it continues to prepare for its 2014 Insurance Services Offices classification evaluation. However, as growth in the area demands a need for more fire department services, the department itself suffers from a lack of funding to be fully staffed.
The ISO rating is assigned to every fire department in the nation and is broken down into three categories related to fighting fires. Half the grade is based on an overall evaluation of the department, 40 percent is based on water supply and 10 percent is based on the dispatch system. The main purpose of the rating is to give insurance companies a standard by which to set premiums for residents in the department's coverage area.
Departments are graded on a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being the best rating possible. The MVFD was given a class 3 rating in 2002.
"We have been working for several years toward preparation for an ISO review," MVFD Fire Chief Gary Vincent said. "ISO sets a grading scale that is commonly used by the insurance industry to determine the premiums people pay for their insurance. It affects both commercial and residential insurance rates in the community we serve."
ISO preparation
To try and keep insurance premiums low for the community it serves, the fire department has been working with an ISO consultant for several years to determine the best way to maintain or drop its ISO rating, Vincent said.
The growth and development in the region, both commercial and residential, has also caused the department to expand its services and fleet.
"We approached the Westwood Magnolia Parkway Improvement District several years ago with concerns for the commercial growth in their area and the impact of some of the new taller buildings in that area and how it would impact the fire insurance rating and the cost," Vincent said. "The WMPID board recognized the problem and agreed to help us fund the purchase of a used ladder truck from the Needham Fire Department that was for sale."
At its July 2013 meeting, the WMPID board, which governs the development area at the corner of FM 1488 and FM 2978, approved $350,000 to purchase a used ladder truck for the fire department, according to WMPID board chairman Carl Gerhardt. Gerhardt said the WMPID also approved the $8,975 purchase of two fire hydrants along the FM 1488 corridor in October 2012 to assist with the MVFD's ISO rating.
The new ladder truck is fully operational and will be housed at Station 186, 32707 FM 2978, once an addition to the station needed to house the ladder truck is built. Vincent said the construction is already underway on the modifications to the station.
"As a result of [WMPID's] generosity with the purchase of this ladder truck, it will substantially reduce the commercial and residential insurance rates in that area," Vincent said.
The MVFD recently purchased a new fire engine to replace an older engine at Station 183 at 26555 Nichols Sawmill Road.
The new engine, a 2014 Ferrara Igniter Fire Engine, provides the latest in fire engine technology and is equipped with a larger water pump and tank, as well as a compressed air foam system, Vincent said. The new engine will replace a 14-year-old engine at one of the department's highest volume stations.
The new engine was purchased through an agreement with Montgomery County Emergency Services District No. 10, which provides funding and equipment for the MVFD, and Ferrara Fire Apparatus Company, a fire truck manufacturer. The new truck and equipment will total about $650,000. The new engine will be delivered in late 2014 and Vincent said it should be in service at Station 183 by Christmas 2014.
The department has taken a number of other measures in the past few years to prepare for the upcoming ISO rating. In 2010, it purchased three fire engines. It also purchased four additional water tankers in 2013, each with the capacity to hold 3,300 gallons of water.
In addition, the department purchased land to build three more fire stations to provide better coverage to the area. The department is in the process of selecting a contractor to build the new stations, which, Vincent said, would all be built in 2014. It has also taken other measures such as buying new hoses and bunker gear.
With the purchase of the new tanker trucks and fire engines, and construction underway at three new fire stations, the department plans to have nine stations, each one equipped with a tanker and fire engine. The department also has two ladder trucks, one is housed at Station 181 in downtown Magnolia, the other at Station 186.
"We have spent the money we have wisely to get the most benefit from the money we have to try and hold the insurance rates as low as possible for the community," Vincent said.
Staffing shortfall
Staffing is the biggest challenge for the fire department, Vincent said. The department runs off the help of about 150-200 part-time and volunteer firefighters. Of the six stations in use, the department only has enough manpower to fully staff four of them.
The growth and development in the area paired with the need to maintain a low ISO rating, necessitates the building of more stations and the addition of more trucks to its fleet. However, with all the upgrades being made, there are not enough firefighters to man the new trucks and stations.
"Our biggest need is really more firefighters on the fire trucks at this point as far as the ISO is concerned," Vincent said. "Once we get the three new stations built, unfortunately we don't have funding to hire firefighters to put in them. Currently, the concern is that we don't have staffing on all the engines and tankers, let alone the ladder trucks."
The department is funded through Montgomery County Emergency Services District 10. Residents who live within ESD 10 pay 10 cents per $100 property valuation strictly for the ESD. Due to state law, funding is capped at 10 cents, so the department has no way of increasing its budget to hire more firefighters, Vincent said.
As the population density increases, the revenues will increase, but the demand for services also increases. The revenue tends to lag behind the request for service and, Vincent said, it would take years before the population density will increase to the point to equal the service demands.
"It's part of the growth curve of a fire department's development from a pure rural department that covers a lot of undeveloped property to a place like downtown New York or Houston, where the population density per square mile is very high and your property values per square mile are high," he said.
Because a continual source of income is needed to provide for staffing, contributions from organizations such as WMPID are not enough to provide adequate dollars for staffing needs, Vincent said.
Sylvia Olszowy, coordinator for Montgomery County ESDs, said the MVFD could possibly look at an increase in sales and use tax in the MVFD coverage area to help increase its budget, but this would require new legislation that would need voter approval.
Montgomery County Precinct 2 Commissioner Craig Doyal said the only options would be private donations or a sales and use tax increase to help bring more money to the department.
"In light of the size of the geographic area it covers, securing funding can be a real challenge for the fire department," Doyal said. "But if they can staff those stations and it will reduce the ISO rating and bring insurance rates down, then that is something the community will need to weigh."
Ultimately, increased funding for the department will depend on what the community decides is the best way.
"Fire department funding will be 100 percent dependent upon whatever funding level the community provides," Vincent said. "The community will decide what level the fire protection will be by the resources they are able to provide."
