Stoughton Fire Union President Calls for Higher Staffing Levels

STOUGHTON, MA — The Stoughton Fire Department has a staffing problem, the firefighter union's president said.

In a recently released statement, Leon Silva, president of Stoughton Fire Local 1512, said the town's fire department is inadequately staffed. According to numbers from Silva, residents in June had to wait 10 times for a neighboring department's ambulance to respond to a 911 call. That went up to 57 times in July and 59 times in August.

"Let's not repeat 2015, when citizens had to wait 521 times for neighboring departments to respond to 911 call in Stoughton," he said. "That's 126 times in three months we lacked the staff to respond to calls for medical emergencies. This practice is extremely dangerous for the citizens of Stoughton and for the men and women of public safety sworn to protect you."

The department responds to about 6,000 calls a year, Silva said. Stoughton has 11 members on call at a time, with the number sometimes dipping to a minimum of nine. The number puts them well below staffing numbers of local towns of similar size. Nearby Norwood has 16 firefighters and EMS members manning the fire station at a time while Randolph has 14.

The National Fire Prevention Agency says that staffing numbers should be no less than 15.

"We now ask for your help, please encourage community leaders to find a way to end this extremely dangerous staffing issue. Also enclosed are staffing comparisons with 10 other communities of similar size, population, and 911 calls. The members of the Stoughton Fire Department remains committed to supply the finest level of public safety to the citizens of the Town of Stoughton," Silva said.

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