Recent actions by La Crosse Mayor Matt Harter directed the La Crosse Fire Chief to submit a proposal which would transform La Crosse’s full time, professional Fire Department into that of a volunteer service. After some discussions and a negative reaction by the community, Mayor Harter has since suggested that a complete transformation might not be in the best interest of the community, but reducing staffing and supplementing with volunteers may be feasible. The stance of Firefighter’s Local 127 is that we are an efficiently run organization that provides a level of service to the community we serve that is second to none.Any change in the way currently staff our department would be extremely detrimental to the level of service we provide.Life safety of both our community and our firefighters would be at risk.
La Crosse firefighters respond to many types of emergencies and provide preventative services to the community we serve. We are in charge of inspecting nearly 6,000 businesses and apartment buildings, assisting property owners in eliminating fire hazards. This preventative measure along with a well organized, timely response has allowed our city to enjoy an exceptionally low fire loss percentage. We operate 1 of only 8 state funded, Level A Hazardous Materials Teams, which is consistently near the top in call volume. We offer a state funded USAR Team which handles trench, confined space, structural collapse, and high angle rescue. Our extrication team is nationally recognized and has won numerous regional and national awards. This provides our personnel with exposure to cutting edge technology and training. We have a water team specifically trained to handle any emergency ranging from flooding rivers to ice rescues and everywhere in between. EMS Care provided by LCFD has demonstrated a cardiac save rate that is currently 3.5 times that of the national average. Services such as these require an aggressive training program which continually is asking more of our firefighters. The annual training of our personnel currently consumes some 20,000 plus hours.
To complement our professional services, we also participate in a number of community based and personal activities. We have partnerships with The Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) and United Way, which require numerous hours of volunteerism and dedication.Our members make this commitment because they realize the importance these organizations have on so many lives in our community. We assist the public by working with mothers to be in the hospitals and also by routinely instructing drop- ins in our fire stations on the proper usage and installation of infant car seats and safety systems.Each year, during the holidays, our local rings the bell for the Salvation Army and we visit the burn units in the hospitals to spend time with the kids and drop off Santa Bears. Our inspection department logs countless hours in public education stressing the importance of respecting and understanding fire emergencies.The firefighters of Local 127 are active members of their community both on, and off the job.
The La Crosse Fire Department and Local 127 have worked for years to lay the foundation for a very productive and efficient service that we are extremely proud of. We understand that Mayor Harter, and many who are not intimately familiar with our organization, cannot be expected to truly understand what we do. That’s why, on an annual basis, we invite local community leaders to attend our annual fire academy.Our academy provides the attendees an up close and personal experience of the La Crosse Fire Department and some of the services we provide.Unfortunately, Mayor Harter declined our invitations and turned away from an opportunity to gain better insight into the who, what, when, where, how and why of the La Crosse Fire Department.
The mayor’s proposal was, and still is, something we take very seriously and personally.It is our opinion that for city leadership to suggest such significant change to the structure of our organization is irresponsible and ill informed.We cannot afford to haphazardly eliminate positions and risk the expertise, pride and premium level of service we have worked so hard to develop. If Mayor Harter’s proposal is acted upon the La Crosse fire service would become merely a shell of what it once was.This is not what our community expects or deserves. An efficient Fire Department offering multiple services is what a strong city, like La Crosse, needs. Please, tell the mayor and your council person that you believe in your fire service and the safety of our community.
