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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2016/02/01 - ADMIN - Minutes - Fire Civil Service Commission - Regular FIRE CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION MINUTES February 1, 2016 – 8:30 a.m. WESTWOOD ROOM – CITY HALL 1. The meeting was called to order at 8:35 a.m. by President Tift. 2. In attendance were Commissioners Stuart Williams and Bob Tift. Also present were Ali Timpone, HR Coordinator/Staff Liaison; Steve Koering, Fire Chief; John Wolff, Deputy Chief; Cary Smith, Assistant Chief; Hugo Searle, Chief of Training and EMS; and Union President Eric Bakken. 3. A motion was made by Commissioner Williams, seconded by President Tift, to appoint Commissioner MacMillan as Commission Secretary for 2016. Motion carried unanimously. 4. Minutes of the December 16, 2016 Fire Civil Service meeting were approved as presented. 5. Staff Liaison Timpone explained that a typographical error was discovered in the minutes of November 2, 2015: President Williams stated in order to do this a change needs to be made in the Rules and Regulations of the Fire Civil Service Commission of the City of St. Louis Park under Rule One, Section 2 “Classifications Specified”. The Commission would need to approve adding the classification of Chief of Training and EMS. Motion was made by Commissioner Tift and seconded by Commissioner MacMillan to approve the firefighter eligibility roster as presented add the classification of Chief of Training and EMS to Rule One, Section 2 of the Fire Civil Service Commission Rules and Regulations. Motion carried unanimously. A motion was made by Commissioner Williams, seconded by President Tift to amend the November 2, 2015 minutes as noted above. Motion carried unanimously. 6. Chief Koering presented the Fire Department Annual Report (attached). The department continues to show increased medical calls, and total call volume topped 5,000 for the first time in 2015. Commissioners had great questions and good discussion followed about department operations. 7. In other business, the City’s legislative agenda continues to move forward, with requested updates to MN Statute 420. The commission will be asked to gather again in the next couple of months to approve the Captain eligibility roster and a recruitment process for a newly approved Fire position in July. 8. The Commission adjourned at 9:24 a.m. Respectfully submitted, Ali Timpone HR Coordinator/City Staff Liaison Fire Civil Service Commission Report Steve Koering: Fire Chief I. Introduction I would like to share with the Commission the following report of the Fire Department’s activities in Fiscal Year 2015. II. Fire Statistics 2015 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 Structure Fires 83 61 61 96 57 84 76 66 63 73 Other Fires 58 71 46 68 37 53 64 48 28 42 Rescue/Emergency Medical 3,032 2,959 3,200 3,140 3,206 3,078 3,117 3,360 3,571 3,720 False Alarms 322 314 293 270 325 288 278 296 350 309 Mutual Aid Given 61 62 67 64 76 60 70 84 77 69 Mutual Aid Received * 29* 26* 27* 22* 36* 45* 25* 31* 6* 56* HCFIT Response (Aid Given) 4 8 1 9 N/A 3 5 6 3 2 Hazmat Responses 74 76 77 77 85 74 88 95 105 104 Other Hazardous Responses 80 111 66 57 108 101 57 110 91 89 All Other Responses 540 619 654 657 578 597 683 588 691 690 Total 4,252 4,273 4,464 4,429 4,472 4,335 4,433 4,647 4,976 5,096 * Mutual Aid Received number is not to be included in Total Total calls for 2015 were up due to an increase in the number of emergency medicals. Major fire incidents were up. Medicals continue to represent over 70% of our call volume. III. Major Fires/Incidents in 2015 April 12, 2015 – 3601 Park Center Blvd At 0436 hours, Fire units were dispatched to 3601 Park Center Blvd for fire alarms sounding and water flowing on the 8th floor, with no sign of smoke or fire. L1 arrive and found nothing showing and the alarm panel indicating sprinkler activation on the 8th floor. Crews found a large volume of water coming from the 8th floor ceiling and the hallway was flooded. E4 crews arrived and alarms were silenced and crews worked to identify the domestic water and shut it off. L1 crew found a water leak near a valve but were not able to shut it off at that point. E4 crews identified and shut off two water valves. An All Call for staffing was requested and responding crews arrived on scene with squeegees and tarps for salvage, overhaul and clean-up operations. A restoration contractor arrived to begin evaluating the clean-up of the 8th floor and all lower level floors had water damage. Spoke with residents about water and electrical issues. Estimated loss for the building and 70 units was $1,000,000. St. Louis Park Fire Department February 1, 2016 June 12, 2015 – 7213 Minnetonka Blvd At 0820 hours, fire crews responded to 7213 Minnetonka for a house fire. L1, E4 and all Chiefs responded. Upon arrival crews found a working garage fire with no exposures. E4 arrived and stretched lines for fire attack. L1 laid water supply and then supported fire suppression activities. Mutual aid units arrived and assisted with support activities. The fire was extinguished and salvage and overhaul efforts were performed. The garage was turned over to the owner with extensive damage throughout. Damage was estimated at $55,000. July 18, 2015 – 6111 Excelsior Blvd At 0140 hours, Station 1 was dispatched to 6111 Excelsior Blvd – Morningstar Birthing Center for fire alarms activated. Captain 33 and E1 responded and arrived to find a large two-story structure with nothing showing. The gas meter on the A-side was free-flowing and smoke was showing from the sprinkler room. Due to the natural gas leaking into the building, E1 staged on the corner. The gas valve was turned off and U3 was repositioned to a corner. Upon opening the sprinkler room, water was flowing from the space and smoke emanating from the room. Smoke was reported coming from the gas meter area. E1 position for a fire attack and it was declared a working fire and additional crews were requested to the scene. L1 and Chief 4 responded. Chief 4 assumed command and Captain 33 became Operations. Crews were working on opening the basement ceiling and found a gas fed fire in the concealed space, we also found electrical fires on the first floor. Crews were working to expose, contain and control the fires. We have sprinkler activation in both the basement and sprinkler room. A First Alarm was requested to the scene and then a Second Alarm was requested due to needing additional crews. Crews opened the ceilings of the basement and first floor, cut holes in the first floor to check for extension and located a melted gas line in the concealed floor space. Units performed salvage operations on the basement and first and second floors and found elevated atmospheric readings in the basement and ventilated the space. Building was turned over to the business owner with the domestic water and sprinkler system shut off and power and gas was also off. Damage was estimated at $1,025,000. August 29, 2015 – 1630 Kentucky Ave S At 1714 hours, a neighbor reported a house on fire that was two doors down. E4 arrived and found a single story house at 1630 Kentucky with heavy smoke showing and Dispatch filled out a full first alarm assignment and switched to Fire Ground 4. Lt. 25 assumed Command. All doors were locked and neighbors advised that they thought the owners were gone. On the Delta side of the house a basement window had burned through and flames had burned up the side of the house into the eaves, but had gone out and there was just heavy smoke. E4 crews laid a 1 ¾” line and sprayed water briefly in the basement from the basement window. We then forced entry and found smoke down to the floor. E1 arrived and laid a supply line to E4 from the hydrant. A door was located leading directly into the basement on the Charlie side and the hose was moved to that entry point – the door was forced and the crew put out hot spots. A fan was set up blowing in a door on the Bravo side of the house and smoke was evacuated. Primary search was conducted and it was all clear. Fire was put under control. The attic was checked and mutual aid companies were released except for the Golden Valley Ladder who covered our Station 2. Smoke and heat kept building in the attic, so the eaves were pulled down on the Delta side, the gable vents were pulled and water was sprayed up into the eaves. Furniture was moved together and tarps were used to protect as much as possible. A trailer was called for from Brooklyn Center to evacuate the blown insulation from the attic. The fire kept growing so the piercing nozzle was forced through the roof in several spots and water was flowed to put out the smoldering fire. Chief 4 assumed command and more crews were called in from Hopkins and Minnetonka to pull ceilings and pull out the insulation on tarps. Water and foam were used to extinguish the rest of the hot spots. Damage was estimated at $120,000 September 21, 2015 – 2912 Gettysburg Ave S At 2323 hours, fire crews were called to a small basement fire caused by a burning de-humidifier, localized to the home’s laundry room. Police arrived first and stated there was fire showing from the basement. Upon arrival, no visible fire was seen after conducting a 360. The homeowner stated that the best access to the basement was through the Delta side door and a pre-connect 1 ¾” was pulled and E1 crew made entry to the basement and discovered the burning appliance that required little water to extinguish. The gas was then shut down and positive pressure ventilation was started. Minnetonka Fire conducted a primary search of the main level and found no extension. The home was turned over to the homeowner. Damage was estimated at $30,000 September 25, 2015 – 8715 35th St W At 0110 hours, fire units were dispatched to 8715 35th St W for a twin home fire. Dispatch performed an All Call and alerted mutual aid companies. L1, E4 and several Chiefs responded. Crews arrived to find a working fire on the exterior A/D corner of a duplex, including a vehicle. Fire was extending to the attic and we did not have an all-clear on the house. L1 laid a hand line and E4 secured water supply and a back-up line. An occupant of the house informed us that there were three others in the house. Those occupants were alerted and extricated. Crews extinguished the exterior house fire and vehicle fire and found the fire had extended to the attic. E4 went interior to check for extension and performed salvage and overhaul. Edina #81 went to the roof and provided a roof report and found a working fire in the attic near the Alpha side. Crews continued to work to extinguish the attic fire, performed overhaul on the D side, performed salvage and checked for extension on the interior. Units also checked for extension and monitored the atmospheric conditions in unit 8711. Both units were ventilated. A board- up company was requested and the building owner was contacted. Building was turned over to Service Master with heavy damage to the D side, roof openings and a lot of ceiling material pulled in the living room. There was virtually no damage in unit 8711. Damage was estimated at $70,000 December 6, 2015 – 4820 Park Commons Dr. At 0733 hours, E1 and E2 responded to a general fire alarm at 4820 Park Commons Dr., a multi-unit apartment complex. Upon arrival, E1 took command with nothing showing, but alarms sounding. Crews investigated and found a slight smell of smoke in the basement area near the pool and sauna area. An All Call was requested for additional crews. After further investigation, a light smoke condition was discovered near the sauna area. This was upgraded to a 1st Alarm. Mutual aid companies arrived and the plan was to locate the source of the fire. A dry tank line from E1 was laid through the Charlie side pool area entrance. At this point cold smoke continued to build while crews searched for the seat of the fire. E1 was moved up to pump E1. A dry supply line was laid. E1 was able to extinguish the fire with tank water and overhauled the fire. A 2nd Alarm was called for additional crews to assist with crew relief. About 45 minutes into the incident, air monitoring determined that air levels were not consistent with normal air in the wing above the fire. High levels of CO and HCN were identified. A 3rd Alarm was called for assisting in achieving an All Clear and ventilation in each apartment. Approximately 60 – 70 units were checked, vented and cleared. We worked with building maintenance manager to access each apartment. After all units were cleared, residents were allowed to return to their apartments. Scene was turned over to Chief 4 for continued logistics support and fire investigation, along with coordinated efforts for a restoration vendor, fire alarm company and building management. Damage was estimated at $150,000 December 11, 2015 – 4060 Brunswick Ave S At 0247 hours, Fire crews were dispatched for a house fire at 4060 Brunswick Ave S with occupants evacuating the structure. E1 arrived to find black smoke on the Delta side of the home. Initial size up confirmed that fire was located on the main level bedroom located on the Charlie Delta corner. A pre- connect attack line was used from E1 to make entry on the Alpha side. E2 arrived to establish a water supply and pulled a second attack line to assist E1. Fire was found in the rear bedroom closet space and extinguished by E1. Primary search of main level was completed and crews gained access to the attic to extinguish any remaining fire conditions. HCMC arrived to check on occupants. Positive pressure ventilation was started and Edina was assigned on deck. Hopkins Ladder and Hopkins Chief 1 arrived and assumed command. E1 existed the structure due to low air flow, Edina and Hopkins entered and continued overhaul. Chief 4 arrived and started the investigation and Park Chief 1 arrived and assumed command. Damage was estimated at $66,000 December 17, 2015 – 1830 Idaho Ave S At 2011 hours, Fire crews were dispatched for a possible apartment/townhome fire. Upon arrival crews noticed power line on fire behind 1830-1810 Idaho and light smoke in the area. Smoke was found to be coming out of 1830 Idaho and Dispatch was updated that we had a working house fire and to elevate the call to a first alarm assignment with Lt. 42 taking Command. E2 crew advanced a line off of E2 and brought it to the front door. A 360 of the property was completed and a fire was discovered in the two basement windows on the B side of the structure. The front door was opened with heavy black smoke coming out. A neighbor confirmed that the residents were all out and were sitting in a van. E2 crew brought the line to the C side of the structure for fire attack through the walkout basement door. E1 arrived and established a water supply and pulled a back-up line. Captain 33 was assigned interior division for the fire attack. Golden Valley Chief 4 arrived and was placed in charge of the deck behind E1. Met with resident who confirmed everyone was out of the structure and she said there was a fire along the wall in the laundry room and that she thought she had put it out with water and then the house started filling up with smoke. After crews attempted a fire attack in the basement, Lt. 42 did a face to face report with the interior division and it was reported that they were having a difficult time reaching the seat of the fire due to trash in the house. With the amount and force of the smoke coming out of the house and the conditions of the basement, it was decided that it was best to switch operations from offensive to defensive. Captain 33 was then placed in charge of operations on the fire ground. Hand lines were placed on the B, C and D side of the structure and we had crews fight the fire from the exterior. Chief 1 arrived and assumed Command. Hopkins Chief 1 was placed in charge of safety. For defensive operations we divided the structure into two divisions – A and C division. After it was determined by safety that it was safe to go into the structure, tactics were switched from defensive to offensive. Damage was estimated at $275,000 Fire Department Recognition at Annual Meeting The Fire Department held its annual meeting on January 26, 2016 at Fire Station #1. Fire Chief Steve Koering invited the Fire Department and CERT members and their families to attend, as well as the Fire Civil Service Commission, City Administration and the Police Department as the following staff were honored for their exemplary performance in 2015: Chief’s Commendation – Captain Paul Rosholt, Firefighter Kris Helberg and Police Officers Jon Riegert and Jennifer Capobianco Unit Citation Award – Lieutenants Glapa and Hansen Excellence in Customer Service – Captain Mark Nelson, Lt. Dan Yaekel, Lt. Matt Nordby, Firefighter Andy Willenbring, Firefighter Billy Breckle, Firefighter Lockrem, Firefighter Tim Smith, Firefighter Tim Nordstrom S.W.A.T – Former Assistant Chief Rodger Coppa and Firefighter Jens Anderson Minnesota Task Force 1 – Former Assistant Chief Rodger Coppa, Captain Mark Nelson, Lt. Dan Yaekel and Lt. Shawn Glapa Honor Guard - Firefighters Lockrem, Smith, Nordstrom, Breckle, Kivel, Roy and Erzberger III. Fire Prevention Bureau Fire Protection Permits: 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 Permits Issued 220 177 224 208 392* 397* 378* 398 Permit Valuation $2,445,439 $2,351,624 $1,454,498 $1,395,429 $2,211,436 $1,886,652 $1,693,164 $2,336,158 Permit Fees $52,838 $49,859 $37,936 $34,356 $53,151 $53,783 $48,525 $70,738 * Recreational Fire Permits are now included in the total number of permits issued. The Fire Prevention Bureau, along with the assistance of the crews, conducted inspections of multi- family dwellings and businesses in St. Louis Park. In 2015, the Fire Department conducted 852 permit inspections and 503 multi-family and commercial inspections/re-inspections. These walk through inspections allow crews to familiarize themselves with the structure while doing code enforcement. We are scheduled to go through every business once every three years. Recreational Fire Permits The Fire Department has heavily marketed the need for recreational fire permits to residents. Starting in May of 2012, the Recreational Fire Permits changed from being annual permits to permanent permits, for as long as the person resides at their residence. On-site inspections are also now required prior to permit issuance. Recreational fires have been becoming increasingly popular, however, many residents do not meet the Minnesota State Fire Code for setbacks and are ineligible for a permit. The City implemented a $50.00 Civil Penalty Fine for people who do not have a permit or are in violation of the permit regulations. Permit holders who violate the regulations will have their permit revoked for one calendar year. Year # Permits Issued # Complaint Calls 2005 270 36 2006 302 26 2007 313 36 2008 470 64 2009 548 63 2010 628 25 2011 698 31 2012 521* 79 2013 173 56 2014 112 36 2015 125 47 * 340 Annual and 181 Permanent Fire Prevention/Public Education: The St. Louis Park Fire Department worked 224 hours on Public Education in 2015. The largest event of the year was the Fire Station 1 Open House. Approximately 2,500 people attended this event to see the station, emergency vehicles and learn about fire safety. Station tours continue to be a popular event in 2015 as community members, scout troops, pre-schools classes, Meadowbrook After School Program children, St. Louis Park Senior High School Youth Development Committee, home schooled and private school groups, special needs children, adults and seniors came to tour the stations. Department members made every effort to accommodate the tours requests and provided educational information on every tour. Fire Department staff provided public education to nearly all of the schools in the city, including Torah Academy, Holy Family, Park Spanish Immersion, Aquila, Peter Hobart and Susan Lindgren, and Kindercare. The events included Career Day at the High School, science fairs, and family reading nights. The Department provided basic fire prevention at the pre-school and kindergarten level to over 400 children. The Department also provided fire safety and education to parents of Early Childhood Family Education at Central Community Center, to senior groups at Menorah Plaza, Park Shore Apartments, Lenox Community Center. The Fire Department sent personnel and vehicles to safety events put on by businesses in the city. The West End, Costco, Cub Foods, Old Navy, Jerry’s Hardware, Home Depot, and Sam’s Club all held Safety Days in 2015. Some events had hundreds of people attending. The Fire Department also participated in a number of other city and community events in 2015 – below is a sampling:  Block Parties: Fire engines went to block parties and neighborhood gatherings throughout the year  Fourth of July Fireworks  National Night Out: The Fire Department had a strong presence in the community, visiting numerous block parties, talking about fire safety and answering any questions residents had.  Parktacular Parade: As always, the Ladder Truck was a popular participant in the Parktacular parade. The Fire Department also provided fire safety handouts and information at the Parktacular Children’s Event at Wolfe Park.  Children First Ice Cream Social  Kool Kids at West End  Vehicle Fair at Central Community Center  Westwood Halloween March  Westwood Lutheran Community Help Day  Toy Drive with Park Tavern  Boy Scout’s Pinewood Derby Year End Event Totals  Events – 122  Hours – 224  Children in Attendance- 7,126  Adults in Attendance – 4,639 IV. Fire Department Training and Wellness In 2015, Fire Department personnel completed 6,244 hours of training. The new class of Paid-on-Call Firefighters had such diverse training needs that some went off to EMT training, some went to apparatus training and some went to the fire academy. Many members completed Ice Rescue Technician certification. Leadership training was provided for the officers and rolled out to the department. Following are some of the more interesting or larger trainings and a quick summary of the diverse topics that we covered through the year: In January we had Basic Animal Rescue Training teaching how to handle animals in distress and also did a training covering strategic planning. February allowed many to complete their Ice Rescue Technician certification training, learn more about the health benefits of healthy eating from Step One Foods, tour some target hazard apartment buildings and attend the first quarter EMT refresher training. March was technical rescue training and a mandatory OSHA class. Members attended a ropes refresher, confined space classroom and scenario and completed the annual SCBA refresher with a hands on course at the nearby playground. April started with a mandatory Hazmat training. Extrication classroom was lead by Lieutenant Nordby and Firefighter Evans. Firefighter Lindblom taught forcible entry on the training simulator, and the month ended with a Leadership training with Chad Weinstein. May brought another mandatory class in Extinguishers and Radios. We also completed a ropes scenario using the Ladder on and some high fencing at the Nelson Building. We learned about flow path during SLICERS training and how to predict and control the movement of smoke, fire and heated gas during fire events. The month ended with the second EMT refresher training. June started with yet another Hazmat class. We did some training with hose bundles and deploying the newly adopted triple lay hose load. The final week of the month brought reviews of recent fire events. In July we did pumping drills and the annual driving course. We also had the opportunity to do some firefighter rescue training in the old McGarvey Coffee building. Firefighter Nordstrom introduced a new gas monitor and members learned about a new rope rescue device called an RPM. August started with Captain Nelson leading the annual Trench Rescue classroom, but like 2014, the rain made the trench too dangerous to do the scenario as planned the following week. We did get into the pool at the Rec Center after the closed for the season and before they drained it. Clean water to train in is always nice. Months end brought another opportunity to review some significant fire events. September was an Elevator familiarization from a state fire inspector, Nozzle Forward (a national hose handling curriculum), Traffic Incident Management led by a state trooper and traffic control technician, and the third EMT of the year. October found us back in the trench, finally making up the hands on scenario that was washed out in August. We did the year’s second rope rescue scenario by navigating a rescue mannequin around the outside of Station 1 using only rope systems. We finished the month with our annual mandatory Live Burn training using a graciously donated house. November started off with a Nutrition class, had an Engagement class led by Chad Weinstein and completed our final Hazmat class of the year. December finished off the year with our annual ice rescue training led by Firefighter Searle, mandatory OSHA classroom and our final EMT refresher. CERT CERT transitioned to monthly meetings with training and there was a recruitment and training class that effectively doubled the size of the team. Fire Department Wellness Fire personnel continued with group fitness when a local trainer was contracted to come to the station twice a weak. This was received well by a very dedicated group of Firefighters and even managed to attract a Chief or two occasionally. The Fire Department also continued to partner with One Step Foods to improve our member’s health. Dr. Klodas led a training around food and cardiac health and how to read food labels. We attracted a lot of local media attention for our efforts to positively affect our members through healthy diet. We also collaborated on a $1.02 million dollar FEMA Safety and Training grant application that was unfortunately not successful. That also led to another attempt to rewrite the grant resubmit it for a FEMA Assistance to Firefighters Grant at the end of the year. There are still may of our members using the Step One Foods products daily. V. Mutual Aid We are doing automatic mutual aid/auto aid with six cities: Edina, Eden Prairie, Hopkins, Golden Valley, Plymouth and Minnetonka. This program continues to be successful by front loading our fires personnel and equipment. 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 Mutual Aid Given 54 61 62 67 64 76 60 70 84 77 69 Mutual Aid Received 25* 29* 26* 22* 22* 36* 45* 25* 31 4 56 *Each mutual aid received number generally represents a minimum of two cities helping St. Louis Park per incident. VI. Staffing In 2015 Assistant Chief Rodger Coppa left our Fire Department to become the new Fire Chief of Plymouth. The position was posted to eligible internal candidates on the Captain’s List. Firefighter Hugo Searle was offered the position and has met all of the conditions and has accepted the position of Chief of Training and EMS effective January 23, 2016. 2015 Career Fire Department – there were no changes. In 2015, Paid-On-Call firefighter numbers started out at 20. Paid on Call Firefighter Keith Heinzen resigned due to moving out of the area. This put us at 19 Paid on Call firefighters, which is below our budgeted strength. With the approval of the City Manager, in June we hired 10 new Paid on Call Firefighters: Jennifer Eichten, Bryan Hamilton, Justin Head, Xander Krohnfeldt, Edward Nunez, Ryan Specken, Matthew Warren, Coty Watkins, Nathan Witt and Adam Younger. Jim Oelhafen was also re- hired after leaving the department in 2010. Jennifer Eichten is on a one year military leave and Edward Nunez and Matthew Warren have both resigned. In 2015, both the Firefighter and Lieutenant’s list processes were conducted and certified by the Fire Civil Service Commission. VII. Programs Park Nicollet Post Discharge Visits Since its inception in 2014, the program with Park Nicollet has continued to evolve. This partnership continues and today includes the Cities of St. Louis Park, Minneapolis, Minnetonka, Eden Prairie and Hopkins. These visits which total nearly 600 have made a significant difference for the patients and the communities they live in. The idea is for firefighter visits to occur within the first 24 hours after hospital discharge, maximizing the patient’s ability to have a successful transition home. These visits include focusing on 5 components: Medications- Does the patient understand what medications to take? Follow up visit- Does the patient have a follow up visit scheduled with their doctor? Do they have a way to get there? Symptoms- Does the patient know what symptoms to be aware of and who to call if they experience the symptom? Food- Does the patient have enough food in the house to get through the next few days? Home Safety- Are there hazards in the house? Is the Smoke detector working? Some of the statistics are as follows; Age: Ranging from 7 months to 102 years. Average age is 65 Gender: 41% Males 59% Females Total visits nearing 600 Some other interesting facts: The teams have installed over 79 smoke and carbon monoxide alarms. We have referred 13 patients to food shelves, 21 patients have been connected with other community resources, and 15 have needed follow up for medication issues. The feedback from the patients has been extremely positive and reinforces not only the need for the program but also the fact that the firefighters are the right choice for the job. 99% of all patients would recommend a visit to a family member of friend. The program continues to gain national attention and has been featured in industry periodicals and case studies for best practice. It has received the Innovation Award from the Minnesota Hospital Association and will be featured at the Fire Rescue Med Conference in May. This conference focuses on mobile integrated healthcare. This year we should finalize the plans for a model that delivers revenue to the participating departments. The File of Life program which was launched in June, 2007 is still a very popular program. We will continue to market this program through the city website, Park Perspectives, neighborhood groups and various other groups and organizations, fire events and apartment/condo communities. There is no fee for residents to obtain these kits. This program was established to help Police and First Responders to provide service when a person may not be able to communicate effectively due to a medical reason or personal injury. The kit includes a magnetized refrigerator folder and an information card to indicate health problems, medications, allergies, emergency contacts, etc. Our Child Car Seat Safety Program continues to be in high demand by both residents and non-residents. We conduct inspections two or three times a month for two to three hours. We still require pre- payment of car seat appointments via credit card and this has virtually eliminated “no shows” for appointments, which was a big problem previously (approximately 40% did not show up for their appointment). The fees were $25.00 for the first car seat or base and $10.00 for each subsequent car seat or base. We currently have four certified car seat technicians. Car Seat Inspections Year 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 Car Seat Inspections 106 100 250 205 225 98 122 158 92 Fees $2,275 $2,340 $5,064 $4,250 $4,390 $2,070 $2,305 $3,185 $1,930 The Fire Department also continues to provide training for city employees in CPR, First Aid, and Right to Know. VIII. Stations and Apparatus The fire stations continue to serve the community very effectively providing a well maintained location for apparatus and staff to remain at the ready. Minor repairs were made on a timely basis by our facilities staff and the Station 1 lobby HVAC issue was repaired with improved air diffusers and the placement of blower in front of Engine 212. A problem with the direct exhaust capture system at both stations has been identified and will be addressed in 2016. In December of 2015, we took delivery of a new aerial apparatus, an EONE Quint with a 1500 GPM pump, 470 gallons of water, 30 gallons of foam and a 78ft ladder. There is nearly 100ft of ground ladders and just under 2000 feet of hose. The custom cab features seating for 4 responders and interior/exterior cabinets for access to tools and equipment from the cab or the street. The cab floor height is 43 inches off the ground and features 8-10 inch step height to minimize stress and strain on firefighters. The truck will be located at Station 2 and will be called “Quint 2”.   Quint 2 replaced a 1998 75ft tandem axle quint that was built by KME. Ladder 1 was sold by the dealer reducing the purchase price of Quint 2 by $100,000. Quint 2 is powered by 450hp Cummins diesel engine with an Allison transmission and is nearly 4 feet shorter and weighs 15,000 pounds less than its predecessor. Quint 2 will respond primarily to fire related and technical rescue calls including car accidents.