Atlanta’s fire stations are sharing trucks amid a shortage of vehicles in the Atlanta Fire Rescue Department that, according to the city, is due to slow repairs and supply chain issues.
Since the beginning of 2023, the city’s fire department has responded to more than 63,000 calls for service — mostly medical emergencies — with more than 80% of calls located in downtown Atlanta.
But the department is struggling with a pervasive fire truck shortage that, officials say, is in large part due to the difficulty getting specialized parts for repairs and the slow purchasing of new trucks driven by supply chain backlog.
Last week, Atlanta Fire Chief Rod Smith told City Council members that Atlantans could rely on the department to respond to emergencies despite the equipment troubles.
“Our members are answering the call no matter what the conditions of the equipment,” Smith said.
As of last Monday, the department had 14 vehicles in need of repairs, including 7 ladder trucks and one rescue truck. According to the department, at least 8 trucks are being shared across different stations to accommodate calls.
Council member Dustin Hillis, chairman of the public safety committee, said he requested the department provide an update to council on the issue after a fire on Northwest Drive engulfed an apartment building.
“It was a two-alarm fire which should have had six engines and six trucks at it,” he said, noting that crews were only able to respond with two ladder trucks — including one of which that wasn’t fully functional.
Hillis also mentioned reports of trucks from the airport being utilized to respond to city fires, although the Hartsfield-Jackson fleet is specifically allocated for the airport alone.
“We’ve (gone) multiple years — I believe six plus years — over the past decade where we have ordered either less than we should have or zero fire apparatus,” Hillis said.
The city will need to purchase three to four fire engines a year and two to three fire trucks a year to make up for the lapse. But Smith said that even if council approves new trucks, those vehicles won’t come in from distributors for at least 36 months due to slow purchasing.
“This condition is not unique to a lot of our rescue, this is going on across the country,” the fire chief said. “So we basically would be getting in line with everybody else trying to purchase what is available.”
National standards recommend trucks be completely replaced after about a 10- to 15-year life cycle, while most of Atlanta’s trucks have been in commission for at least two decades, Smith said.
Currently, the department is waiting on the delivery of 11 pieces of equipment.
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Credit: TNS
Credit: TNS
In an effort to tamp down on car break-ins, Atlanta City Council members passed legislation last week that would create new security camera requirements for buildings throughout the city.
The legislation requires developers install a security camera system that can be integrated into the Atlanta Police Department’s vast network of cameras across the city on all projects of 100,000 square feet or more.
According to APD, there are nearly 35,000 cameras across the city that law enforcement can access to help solve crimes. Most are private security cameras that can either be accessed at the request of APD, or are completely integrated in the department’s camera system.
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ICYMI: Mayor Andre Dickens will extend the development ban on the the former Atlanta Medical Center site for another six months. Our AJC colleague Donovan Thomas tracked down the mayor while he was getting his annual flu shot at a CVS last week.
The mayor has had harsh words for Wellstar Health System on its abrupt closure of the Level I trauma center in November 2022.
If approved by the Atlanta City Council, it will be April 2024 — a full 18 months since the hospital was closed — before owner Wellstar can do anything new with the 25-acre property that sits in the Old Fourth Ward.
“We’d love another hospital or another medical care facility right here.” Dickens said of the shuttered site.
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Credit: Miguel Martinez
Credit: Miguel Martinez
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