In his 37 years as chief of the City of Houston Fire Department, Don Rust has seen many firefighters come and go.
With 18 firefighters on the roster at this juncture in 2013, Rust figures the department is at point where it needs to see a few more come, and can’t afford to see any go.
“We’re really not to the point where we don’t have enough manpower,” he said, “but we’re at that point where it’s hard to keep a full crew at all times. But most departments have seen a decline in the past several years; I think it’s hard these days to get much volunteerism on anything.”
While it’s unlikely that any able-bodied individual interested in joining the department would be denied the opportunity, Rust said there is an ideal model, so to speak.
“Really, anyone is welcome who can do the work,” he said, “but the thinner, the better. It’s hard work and they need to be in good shape and not have medical problems that would prevent them from doing the work.”
Rust said the City FD’s current roster features firefighters ranging in age from 16 to 62.
“Ideally, we would like to have them 18 to 35,” Rust said. “That’s the ideal age group because they can do the most work and they’re the most agile. We’ve had women in the department before, too, and we would certainly do so again under the right circumstances.”
Manpower shortages cause a variety of problems for volunteer fire departments.
“It puts a strain on all the volunteers who are working,” Rust said. “Just like with anything else, when you’re short of help the ones who are there have to do more.”
The City of Houston FD was founded in the late 1940s, and Rust has been in the fold for a total of about 40 years. He said that new volunteers will be shown the ropes before entering a hot zone.
“We’ll get them an application, do a background check, and then we’ll start getting them used to the equipment,” he said. “Before you can actually work on a fire ground, there’s a 36-hour basic course you have to take, plus a hazardous material course and a few other things that are mandatory.
“But we’ll put them right to work; the first thing they can do would be helping out here at the station, like with cleaning hoses and putting them on the trucks. Getting familiar with the trucks and knowing where all the equipment’s at is very important. There are some of us who have been here 10 years and still have a hard time finding everything.”
Rust said that while volunteer firefighters are compensated to some extent, monetary gain should by no means be a high priority for a newcomer.
“We get $25 a call,” he said. “If it’s a 10-minute call, a person can do all right. But sometimes you might be on a structure fire for three to six hours, and two or three of those are here at the station cleaning up, putting gear back and getting ready for the next one.
“Twenty-five dollars doesn’t go far then.”
After completing initial training, firefighters are urged to take a 200-hour nationwide certification class hosted by the University of Missouri, referred to as Firefighter 1 and 2. The state backs the education.
“That involves a lot of classroom and practical skills,” Rust said. “Before a firefighter can actually put on breathing apparatus and go into a structure fire, you need to have that certification.”
National certification courses don’t mark the end of training, as modern day firefighters participate in an ongoing training regimen.
“We do specialty training of every kind,” Rust said. “Everything from CPR to pump operations and rescue. There’s and endless amount that we try to get in in a year’s time.
“We keep it all on file, because ISO (Insurance Services Organization) will be back in here one of these days and they want to see what training we’ve been doing.”
ISO sets insurance rates and assigns ratings to departments around the state based on criteria including training, equipment, pumping ability, and many other factors. Ratings also take into consideration water availability and 911 and dispatching operation.
The ISO reviews its ratings about every 10 to 12 years, and last did so in 2006. On a scale of one to 10 (one being best), the City of Houston FD has an ISO 4 rating, higher than that of all but a few similar departments in Missouri.
“It’s really a team effort,” Rust said. “The ISO has a formula where the fire department is worth 50 percent of a total of 100 points, water department is worth 40 percent, and 911 is worth 10 percent. Their survey involves all of that, and if you miss on any part of it, you’ve missed out.”
Thanks to several types of grant funding, Rust is able to outfit volunteers with state-of-the-art gear, and the department has a high-tech ladder truck being paid for via a 1/8-of-a-cent, a voter-approved sales tax.
Members of the City of Houston Fire Department regularly meet twice a month, on the second Thursday and the fourth Tuesday. Rust said he knows the task of fighting fires on a volunteer basis is not for everyone.
“Most of the guys here are here to volunteer,” he said. “It’s a different group than a lot of people.”
For more information or to volunteer, call the City of Houston at 417-967-3348, or get in touch with a current firefighter.
We’re really not to the point where we don’t have enough manpower. But we’re at that point where it’s hard to keep a full crew at all times.”