RICHMOND, Va. — A Richmond firefighter association shared widespread concerns within the city’s department following dozens of vacancies and reports of burnout.
Keith Andes is the president of Richmond Professional Firefighters Association IFF Local 995. He also served as a Richmond firefighter for more than three decades.
In June, he sent a letter to city council and city administrators detailing the impacts that the vacancies have had on first responders.
“Suicide rate in the fire service has now overtaken the line of duty deaths we have in the fire department nationwide. These are not only mental health issues, but also cancer,” Andes explained.
A Richmond firefighter who spoke to CBS 6 on the condition of anonymity wrote in an email, “mandatory OT [overtime] is detrimental to our health and wellness.”
“There is no end to mandatory OT [overtime] and staffing issues in sight,” the firefighter stated. “Recruit classes are getting pushed out so slowly that by the time they graduate, there's more people who have left and open vacancies once again. This used to be the job that no one ever left and the job that you had to fight thousands of people to get. Now, we are losing so many great people left and right due to negative things going on within the department.”
Other first responders said the working conditions have led them to sleep deprivation, PTSD, depression, anxiety and alcoholism.
Andes addressed the eye-opening costs associated with overtime.
He said from July 2021 through May 2022, the city has spent $3.8 million on overtime within the fire department. He estimated that cost to rise an additional $500,000 by the end of the month.
RFD Chief Melvin Carter confirmed during Tuesday’s city council public safety committee meeting that he needs to fill 47 vacant firefighting positions.
“We would like to see the city take a proactive approach,” Andes said.
Carter said the city has applied for a FEMA Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) grant to add additional positions.
The Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response Grants (SAFER) was created to provide funding directly to fire departments and volunteer firefighter interest organizations to help them increase or maintain the number of trained, "front line" firefighters available in their communities.
“That would bring 72 firefighter positions to the City of Richmond at a total of 18 people per fire company,” Carter explained.
The city is also actively pursuing building two new fire stations — one in downtown and the other in Whitcomb Court.
Carter said they’re accelerating fire academy classes to get more employees into positions faster. The next academy of fire recruits will graduate in October.
But, he admitted that the help won’t arrive overnight.
Reva Trammel is chair of the public safety committee and 8th Voter District Richmond City Council representative. She said she has pushed Richmond Fire for answers to the issues that concern her.
“Our city is in trouble right now,” she said. “Our citizens need to realize seconds matter — not minutes, but second matters. When you don’t have firefighters that can come to these fires? What’s going to happen. It’s going to put the citizens’ lives in jeopardy?”
