The Mount Vernon Fire Department has 12 part-time firefighters it can rely on and a dozen students who mostly help with emergency medical services runs, Fire Chief Chad Christopher said.
The department began taking calls under the city’s contract with College Township on June 9, 2021, but didn’t staff the Gambier fire station until Oct. 1, he told the Mount Vernon City Council at its June 27 meeting.
It started with 19 part-time firefighters. Three of them were hired to work full time. A few others got full-time jobs elsewhere.
When the MVFD took over the student program at Kenyon College, only three students were participating. This year, 12 students are participating, the fire chief said. This is the first year it allowed students who only had EMT certifications.
“I was more than happy to just say, ‘You want to be an EMT and go on squad runs? We'll be more than happy to take your help.’ So they appreciated that,” Christopher said.
EMS calls represent 85% of the total number the Fire Department gets, he said.
The department has answered 323 calls out of College Township. Kenyon College had the greatest number of incidents at 218, with 112 of them some type of false alarm, he added.
The entire department had 2,936 calls from Jan. 1 to June 27. That was up about 355 emergency calls compared to January through June last year, Christopher said. But the city didn’t have College Township emergency coverage in 2021.
The city has applied for a Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response Grant (SAFER) from FEMA for three firefighters.
“The SAFER Grant is to pay 100% of that person's wages and everything for three years and then you can reapply and get another 100% for three more years,” Christopher said.
One of the department’s fire trucks is in for repairs after an accident during the storms. The crew was going down a hill in Gambier and ran up against a downed tree 15 minutes after the storm hit.
“So they ended up kind of kicking the windshield out getting through the crash, turning around and [coming] into a house fire on Royal Street,” he said.
Mount Vernon’s improved ISO ratings will go into effect on Sept. 1 and should have a positive effect on insurance premiums.
Water treatment plant needs repairs
Public Utilities Director Thomas Marshall told City Council that upgrades and repairs to the city’s water treatment plant will take millions of dollars. But he asked for approximately $226,000 on Monday to rehabilitate one of the two clarifiers and an additional $219,000 to buy replacement recarbonation control panels.
He estimated all of the work needed would cost approximately $7 million but anticipated getting a federal loan for that work.
Councilmember Tammy Woods’ motion to move the two projects to their final reading failed when Councilmembers Mike Hillier and Janis Seavolt voted against them.
“What I suggest is two weeks, [which] isn’t going to kill us. So it needs to go to a third reading. There's a lot of information here to digest,” Hillier said before the vote.
Councilmember Amber Keener said she was in support of approving the projects immediately.
“I've toured the water treatment plant and I've seen those lime silos. And it's amazing to me that they're still standing,” she said.
Materials costs impact planned maintenance facility
With building costs rising, City Engineer Brian Ball said staff wanted to get a new maintenance facility under roof by awarding a bid soon this year. Concrete flooring and insulation might need to be put on next year’s budget.
The council has approved funding for the project based on 2021 materials costs.
“If we get the building under roof, we lock in the price of the building,” he said.
Council agreed to hold a committee meeting on legislation for this to be considered for approval.
