Taunton fire finally has ladder company. Cost, why it matters, where money's coming from

TAUNTON — For the first time in at least 100 years the Taunton Fire Department has a ladder company to go with its ladder truck.

“This is a gamechanger for the Taunton Fire Department,” Fire Chief Steven Lavigne told the mayor and City Council on June 25 when the city promoted six firefighters, five of whom will be part of the new ladder company.

The five promotions for the ladder company are: Lt. Marc Faria, Lt. Jay Harrington, Lt. Anthony Burton, Lt. David Galante and Capt. Steve Malcolm.

The sixth promotion — unrelated to the ladder company — was Fire Prevention Officer Robert Bastis from captain to deputy chief. Lavigne said Bastis was promoted due to the amount of work generated and increase in responsibilities the Fire Prevention Office has received.

What's a ladder company?

A minimum of four people — three firefighters and one "company officer," such as a captain or lieutenant — are supposed to staff an active ladder truck at all times , according to the National Fire Protection Association . The full crew is known as a ladder company.

For many years, the Taunton Fire Department has had only two firefighters on average staffing one ladder truck on any given shift, without a company officer included.

“We’ve always had a ladder truck. What we’ve not had is the personnel needed to safely and effectively operate them,” said Taunton Fire Lt. Timothy O’Leary, president of the Taunton firefighters union, at the June 25 City Council meeting.

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What does a ladder company do?

The ladder truck’s responsibilities when battling a blaze include creating entry points into the building, search and rescue, and inducing ventilation of smoke in the building.

During a fire, a ladder, whether aerial or ground, needs to be quickly raised. A minimum of two firefighters are needed when cutting a hole into the structure, whether on the roof or elsewhere, to ventilate smoke, use that access to rescue people, or both.

The remaining members of the ladder company stay on the ground to operate the truck and equipment, assist with search and rescue on the ground level, or spring into action if an emergency arises amongst the rest of the crew fighting the blaze.

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Understaffed ladder truck can delay response

An understaffed ladder truck is inefficient and problematic.

“Yes, it delays our response,” O’Leary told the Gazette back in March.

Problems with an understaffed truck include having one person doing two-person jobs, such as cutting access and ventilation points into a building on fire and requiring the assistance of crew members from other Engine companies on site, leaving those trucks shorthanded when those firefighters should be focused on fighting the actual fires.

Without a company officer on a ladder truck, the unit can’t assist and respond to emergency medical services calls, which can be an issue when other engines are either already out responding to other emergencies, or are pulled from other fire stations farther away.

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Why no ladder company?

Lavigne said the department's historical journals indicate there was a ladder company dating back to the 1860s when the city's municipal fire department was established.

For reasons unclear, the ladder company was done away with by the early to mid-1920s.

Lavigne said he as well as previous fire chiefs have tried to reestablish a ladder company for decades. O’ Leary said back in March he thinks money has always been the underlying issue as past mayoral administrations focused on other concerns and expenditures , whether for the Fire Department or other departments.

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Costs for upgrades and promotions

The city's Chief Financial Officer Patrick Dello Russo said Mayor Shaunna O’ Connell “prioritized the ladder company” as both police and fire plan their moves into the new public safety complex being built on County Street.

The five promotions for the ladder company are costing the city $120,000 a year. This is coming from the city’s general fund, which will henceforth be reflected in the Fire Department’s budget.

“The finance department was able to shift resources to immediately allow for the promotions,” for this fiscal year, which began July 1, said Dello Russo.

In addition, $1.3 million for a new ladder truck and $1 million for new assorted firefighter equipment are also being spent, coming from the city’s Capital Improvement Plan funds.

Regarding the backfilling of staff positions emptied for the promotions, Lavigne said that's still to be determined when the hiring process will start as it's based on available funds.

“We’ll hire when we can,” said Lavigne.

Dello Russo added the city’s finance team has identified some finance options to fund the backfilling for a later date.

Lavigne said the fire department has previously funded staffing positions through Federal Emergency Management Agency SAFER Grants . The Fire Department will be reapplying for a new SAFER Grant this fall, hopefully being an income source to fund at least one of the needed backfilled slots.

O’ Connell said via email: "We are proud to work with Chief Lavigne and Lt. O'Leary to establish the first ladder company in 100 years. Our team accomplishments in enhancing public safety will ensure we continue to deliver the highest level of service to our community.”

A new era

With the five promotions, the Fire Department will have a ladder company totaling 12 officers, creating three-person units for 4 shifts.

This still doesn’t reach national standards of four-person teams. Lavigne said this is "a big step in the right direction" for the department. Lavigne added the long-term end goal is to have four-person teams.

When will the new truck arrive?

The new $1.3 million ladder truck won’t be arriving until summer 2025 said Lavigne.

Presently, the Taunton Fire Department already has two ladder trucks, which have been rotated for use for years to extend their lives. The main ladder truck, Ladder 2, will be relied upon for the next year, while the older truck, ladder 3, will be kept as a spare for when Ladder 2 needs preventative maintenance and repairs.

Lavigne said back in March there haven’t been any talks about having a second ladder company, and that isn’t presently a goal.

“It’s the firefighters that matter. It’s the people that get the work done, not the toolboxes,” he said back in March, explaining Taunton FD can thrive with one ladder company.

Lavigne said when the new truck arrives next summer it will become Ladder 1, while Ladder 2 becomes the spare.  It's still to be determined what will be done with the older Ladder 3, whether donating it, selling it, or keeping it for training purposes.

This article originally appeared on The Taunton Daily Gazette: Taunton fire finally has ladder company. Cost, why it matters, where money's coming from