Rye Brook FD Night Staffing

[chris498 31]

Found this while looking for something else...

http://cms.firehouse.com/dept/RYEBROOKNY

Interesting little "tid-bit" in the news section about overnight coverage.

Has Rye Brooks career fire department been staffed during the evenings in the past? I thought they currently only provided coverage during the day..... or has that changed?

Also, how many paid firefighters are on the staff, 4, 5 6?

[FF402 133]

Doesn't Port Chester cover at night?

[Stench60 29]

Rye brook works a 7am to 7pm shift in their quarters responding with either their ladder or engine depending on the nature of the alarm.

Port Chester provides 24/7 full coverage to Rye Brook as we have for the last 186 years, with one short, regretable lapse.

[RBFD4 0]

Why wouldn't Rye Brook want that firehouse staffed 24/7.

It is their firehouse.

Whats the point of building a firehouse thats closes at night?

[Guest BrotherFF]

The FD CLOSES at night? Why?!?! And the community accepts this?

Isn't Rye Brook a bedroom community? Shouldn't it be the other way around?

[RBFD4 0]

I don't think any of us in Westchester should accept that Firehouse closing.

That firehouse should be operational 24/7.

[TRUCK6018 50]

The FD CLOSES at night? Why?!?! And the community accepts this?

Isn't Rye Brook a bedroom community? Shouldn't it be the other way around?

Rye Brook also has somewhat of a commercial district.

Regardless of whether or not they close at night, I think we can all agree it's an improvement to what it was not that long ago.

[Stench60 29]

The firehouse WILL be manned at night by the Port Chester FD.

[chris498 31]

Port Chester Volunteers are going to respond why RBFD apparatus? That is an interesting concept.

[exmrvfc 0]

Simple answer to staffing Rye Brook 24/7 is money. For every FF onduty 24 hours you need to hire 4 to allow for time off and vacations. I doubt Rye Brook wants to double their payroll anytime soon.

[Guest backupat24]

port chester cover 24/7 no matter what time any calls day/ night port chester rolls with ladder rescue and 3 engines

[RBFD4 0]

What if Rye Brook took the 1 million dollars or so it pays Port Chester, and hired more of its own firefighters?

Thats were this thing is going anyway.

I'm sure mutual-aid is a little less expensive.

[Stench60 29]

[-X Not even close to a million, and I'm sure they've done the math and figured out that it will cost them a hell of alot more than what they're paying PC to have a properly staffed dept. in place.

As to mutual aid, are you suggesting that they create another Mt. Vernon situation? In all honesty Mutual Aid works perfectly, it's internal problems that create the issues. Why should PC supply fire protection for nothing when it's being paid for it now?

[RBFD4 0]

I apologize, according to the Village of Rye Brooks web site the correct number is $737,969.00

It also looks like this is the last year of the contract.

I think you need to define a properly staffed fire department, yes FDMV has had staffing problems, but who hasnt?

None of us are properly staffed.

As for mutual - aid, I think its safe to say we all take advantage of the system. Everytime there is a fire in Westchester somebody is relocating.

You are correct in saying internal problems create the issues, that will always be. But as firefighters we are reponsible to protect everyone.

Wouldn't in make sense for PC firefighters to encourage or at least support Rye Brooks FD?

If not maybe RB will pay another community? Like I said, only one year left.

[chris498 31]

I don't think Mutual Aid is being abused in Westchester. In fact, as many members of this web form have indicated on other threads, MA is a vital part of our emergency services. Frankly I believe that others will agree with me that WC could do a lot more with MA to provide safer and more efficient services to our the populations we protect.

On the contray, if one department responds to an alarm and they have no one else left to protect their community, and they request mutual aid for coverage and the coverage is then protecting the community in the event of further incidents, is that really abuse? Not in my mind....... but who am I...... a fool from Katonah.

[Stench60 29]

Chris498, you're not a fool.... just someone with a different opinion that you are perfectly entitiled to have.

As to mutual aid, I would be the last person to say, and I did point out in my last post that the system works, that mutual aid is not working. The problem is with politicians and bureaucrats who see mutual aid as a panacea, that knowing that the next community that is willing to provide itself with outstanding fire protection will provide help at the drop of a hat as soon as it's called for so they can operate their fire service on the cheap.

[chris498 31]

In that regard Stench I think I have to agree with you that there are a few examples where certain municipalities are relying too heavily on mutual aid to provide adequate protection for their communities, One example I will leave nameless comes to mind..... however, I do not think that Mutual Aid on a whole is being abused, that's what it is there for. I've gone down this road before with other discussions regarding the response system in counties in Maryland where you might get an initial response from 4 differnent communities. If one of those companies fails to sign on within a certain period of time, another company is then directed to respond...... I know this hasnothing to do with Rye Brook at this point..... and I know that concept would probably not work here in WC, but I think it provides an interesting glimpse of how the concept of mutual aid is viewed in other areas of the country.

[TRUCK6018 50]

Mutual aid works, and it works well (at least in the northern part of the county). One example I've seen of it being abused was down in the lower part of the county.

There was a department down there, that because of finances, only had enough staffing to handle minor alarms. If something significant came in they would call in there neighbors every time. Again, this wasn't due to the fire department but because of the politicians of city it's in.

The Rye Brook/Portchester issue is not truely mutual aid. In fact, it's not mutual aid at all. This type of arrangement is automatic aid. With an auto aid agreement there pre-determined inner municipal response to a specific area. In this instance it is Portchester that responds into Rye Brook because of an agreement or (in this case) contract between the two.

There are numerous other cases of auto aid in the county including parkway responses or tanker responses.

Is any of this taking advantage of the system? I think not. It's nothing more than the individual departments assuring they will have the resources on hand early to handle what is reported. I know I would rather have them and not need them than to need them and not have them.

[Stench60 29]

I believe that we all need to realise that the PC/RB arrangement is, as has been pointed out, not mutual aid. However it is also not automatic aid or response. The Port Chester FD is the primary response FD in Rye Brook at all times.

I apologise if I led this discussion in an unintended direction. I was simply trying to point out the drawbacks if RB were to go on it's own in it's current configuration.

[Guest BrotherFF]

If Port Chester is primary, then why is Rye Brook a seperate department? Why not just have one department? I don't understand the purpose? Shouldn't Rye Brook be primary for its town?

[pcfd64 1]

One issue w/ Mutual Aid is something I learned from the Rye Brook/ Rural Metro debacle. The court ruled that the governing body has sole responsibility for determining its fire coverage - the Home Law rule. That puts the direction of fire protection into hands of people that typically have little or no experience in the field! Those same people are challenged to bring their budgets in on plan, etc so our fire priorities find their way down the list quickly.

Second - and something politicians rely on - is that there is no AUTHORITY in Westchester that has say on whether any community's fire plan is sufficient and therefore eligable for mutual aid. You can comment all you want but there is no one at the County or State level that is charged w/ monitoring or approving a fire coverage plan. Rye Brook used that to hire Rural Metro's plan of only 4 full time staff-period - and let the rest of us bear the burden via mutual aid.

Fortunately (I hope) the lesson was learned but that remains to be seen.