According to a report from Local12, a recent response by the Newport (KY) Fire Department (NFD) was proof enough that staffing cuts have put firefighters and the public at risk.
The Newport Firefighters’ Union said that when the NFD responded to a house fire on Thornton Street Monday, the department had just a command vehicle and two engines available that totaled seven firefighters.
As a result, the Union said, the whole house burned up.
The department’s other engine company was unable to respond because its members were staffing two ambulances that were also on runs. That means it took more time to get that fire under control.
The Union noted that the National Fire Protection Association recommends 15 to 17 firefighters be on an incident scene within eight minutes. It took firefighters more than 10 minutes yesterday before enough firefighters from other agencies showed up to reach that number.
The city of Newport has yet to respond to our request for a comment.
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