MARLBOROUGH, MA — Marlborough firefighters had no available fire companies for part of Wednesday afternoon after crews were sent to two incidents minutes apart, according to the local firefighters' union.
Marlborough Firefighters Local 1714 said crews were dispatched at 2:13 p.m. Wednesday to a brush fire along I-495 that required all three of the city’s engine companies. Nine minutes later, Truck 2 and Rescue 1 were sent to an elevator entrapment on Broad Street, leaving no available fire companies in the city between 2:22 and 2:40 p.m., according to the union.
The brush fire kept crews committed until 3:04 p.m., meaning the city had no available engine companies to respond to additional emergencies between 2:13 and 3:04 p.m., the union said.
The union said the incidents highlight ongoing staffing challenges at the Marlborough Fire Department and urged residents to contact elected officials to support increased staffing.
The warning comes as the department reports a higher volume of emergency calls this year than at the same point in 2025.
The Marlborough Fire Department said Monday thatfirefighters responded to 846 emergency incidents in May, bringing the department’s year-to-date total to 3,929 incidents. That is 241 more incidents than the 3,688 recorded through the same period in 2025, an increase of about 6.5 percent, according to department data.
The May total works out to an average of about 27 emergency incidents per day.
The department also reported an increase after April, when firefighters had responded to 769 emergency calls for the month and 3,073 calls for the year. At that point, the department said it was trending 5 percent ahead of 2025.
Marlborough Firefighters Local 1714 President Matthew Armour told city councilors last month that the department responded to about 9,225 calls last year, nearly 50 percent more than in 2014, while still operating with staffing levels from the 1990s.
Firefighters have raised the issue for more than a decade through the budget process, Armour said, including proposals for gradual staffing increases and long-term planning for a future Westside fire station.
In a previous social media post, the union said firefighters “cannot continue to do more with less forever” and called adequate staffing necessary for public safety and firefighter safety.
The City of Marlborough and the Marlborough City Council did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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