A Talk with WMFR Chief Lombardi 9-22-2014
We received an interesting email from a GMCA member regarding emergency preparedness at West Metro Fire Rescue Station 4:
Member:
"Hi GMCA - I wanted to bring to your attention a matter that is concerning to us and many of our neighbors related to ambulance response to our neighborhood. With the recent cuts in service from West Metro Fire Rescue, ambulances are once again moving further away from our neighborhood.
"Station 4 on Alameda near safeway used to have an ambulance - it was relocated over a year ago to Station 9 near Bear Creek Lake Park. The primary ambulances responding to our community have been coming from station 6 (near the jeffco fairgrounds), station 2 (at Colfax and Robb), and station 8 (near Jewell and Garrison). The district is currently proposing they move the ambulance from station 6 to Station 3 (1st and Garrison). We believe they are relying upon the ambulances that might be in the area taking patients to St. Anthony Hospital to respond to our community. We are concerned about the lengthier response times to our neighborhood since Green Mountain doesn't really have an ambulance in our area anymore.
"Just wanted to make you aware, in case you weren't."
"Hi GMCA - I wanted to bring to your attention a matter that is concerning to us and many of our neighbors related to ambulance response to our neighborhood. With the recent cuts in service from West Metro Fire Rescue, ambulances are once again moving further away from our neighborhood.
"Station 4 on Alameda near safeway used to have an ambulance - it was relocated over a year ago to Station 9 near Bear Creek Lake Park. The primary ambulances responding to our community have been coming from station 6 (near the jeffco fairgrounds), station 2 (at Colfax and Robb), and station 8 (near Jewell and Garrison). The district is currently proposing they move the ambulance from station 6 to Station 3 (1st and Garrison). We believe they are relying upon the ambulances that might be in the area taking patients to St. Anthony Hospital to respond to our community. We are concerned about the lengthier response times to our neighborhood since Green Mountain doesn't really have an ambulance in our area anymore.
"Just wanted to make you aware, in case you weren't."
This note was well conceived and factual in every way. We really appreciate these and consider this an important example of "participating" in our neighborhood and the GMCA.
Read on.
Read on.
GMCA hears from West Metro Fire Rescue -
Wow. Your note of concern came to me 4 hours ago. I happened to at my desk, so I used the "Submit Feedback" form 3 hour ago to WMFR.
I just got off the phone with Chief Don Lombardi. (The Chief.) Very nice fellow.
As a preamble, Chief Lombardi is working on a district-wide deployment plan for all resources based on several factors including the failure of the recent financing vote. Living with that, he is making use of all metrics of the entire department to get the best deployment for his resources and generating a deployment plan that works.
BUT more important, the Chief informed me that every rig of every type at all stations including our beloved Station 4, has Advanced Life Support ("ALS") capabilities including equipment, medications and trained personnel. So each of these units can provide critical first responder care in a timely fashion. This buys time for additional resources to arrive should transport to the hospital be required.
This explanation by the Chief himself fits with my very recent experience with station 4 at the GMCA picnic. I hope you all had reason to chat with the teams that came over to meet us. I happen to ask them how their day had gone since we were blessed by having two units come to the picnic. The response was that it was pretty quiet. They had handled three calls and two were "medicals". Sounded like a typical mix.
Bottom line is that we have the response, the medical equipment and the medications we always had; except true to your observation, a transport vehicle is not at Station 4. Chief Lombardi promised that when he is complete with final approvals and deployments according to his new plan, that plan would be made public and that GMCA would know about it. He further committed to arranging a Ward 4 meeting with Dave Wiechman and Adam Paul to present the changes that are coming up. He anticipated that the plan would finalized near the end of October. He'd also be happy to persent to a GMCA board meeting.
GMCA is very pleased that this question came up. Thanks for sending in the question. It would seem that our West Metro Fire Rescue organization is very open to communication with us.
Dave
GMCA
Wow. Your note of concern came to me 4 hours ago. I happened to at my desk, so I used the "Submit Feedback" form 3 hour ago to WMFR.
I just got off the phone with Chief Don Lombardi. (The Chief.) Very nice fellow.
As a preamble, Chief Lombardi is working on a district-wide deployment plan for all resources based on several factors including the failure of the recent financing vote. Living with that, he is making use of all metrics of the entire department to get the best deployment for his resources and generating a deployment plan that works.
BUT more important, the Chief informed me that every rig of every type at all stations including our beloved Station 4, has Advanced Life Support ("ALS") capabilities including equipment, medications and trained personnel. So each of these units can provide critical first responder care in a timely fashion. This buys time for additional resources to arrive should transport to the hospital be required.
This explanation by the Chief himself fits with my very recent experience with station 4 at the GMCA picnic. I hope you all had reason to chat with the teams that came over to meet us. I happen to ask them how their day had gone since we were blessed by having two units come to the picnic. The response was that it was pretty quiet. They had handled three calls and two were "medicals". Sounded like a typical mix.
Bottom line is that we have the response, the medical equipment and the medications we always had; except true to your observation, a transport vehicle is not at Station 4. Chief Lombardi promised that when he is complete with final approvals and deployments according to his new plan, that plan would be made public and that GMCA would know about it. He further committed to arranging a Ward 4 meeting with Dave Wiechman and Adam Paul to present the changes that are coming up. He anticipated that the plan would finalized near the end of October. He'd also be happy to persent to a GMCA board meeting.
GMCA is very pleased that this question came up. Thanks for sending in the question. It would seem that our West Metro Fire Rescue organization is very open to communication with us.
Dave
GMCA