Jumpline magazine January 2024 - Flipbook - Page 9
1403 Of昀椀cers Continued
Paul D Blake, Ret.
Treasurer
density based on the total square miles and not just the square
miles within the UDB. Had it been calculated properly, the density in Station 16’s area would increase from 241 to 3,868 and
Station 65 from 53 to 3,802. Keep in mind that roughly 25% of
residents living in Homestead and Florida City live in poverty. It
has been my experience that these individuals are more likely
to use 9-1-1 as their primary access to healthcare.
Similarly, what about Station 6? What will happen when R-71
moves to their station? The report lists Station 6 as the busiest
in south Miami-Dade County. The fact is we need three units
out of Station 6 and maybe even a second suppression unit.
I can’t imagine Station 6 and Station 16 operating with
just two units in each station.
When you get down to it, we have more than
enough call volume to justify adding more units to
existing stations. Unless the area is a newly developed area, such as Northwest Miami-Dade,
perhaps the best option is to beef up service at
existing stations. When you factor the cost of
land and construction, the saving of a minute or
two is not worth the millions it takes to build and
operate a station.
Take future Station 82 (Sky Vista) as an example. Some of
the “senior” members will recall this site as it was planned over
thirty years ago. It is a vacant lot next to the Lowes at Campbell
Drive (SW 312 Street) and 162 Avenue. That is the end point
for four different 昀椀re stations. The report states, “When funded
and built, this station will require a 昀椀re suppression and rescue
to serve the area properly.” Arguably those units would better
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serve that area as additional units from Station 6 or 16, not as
R-82 but as R-206, R-216 or L-6. Maybe we will go full circle
and bring back L-16 the same way we are resurrecting E-18.
The fact is we have enough call volume and demand to justify
the funding of additional units at existing stations. There is no
need to justify opening new service by stating it is for a future
area and temporarily placing it at existing stations. The answer
is to request new service when the station is scheduled to open.
This shell game fools residents and planners into thinking there
is additional service when there is not.
We do not have to average 8 calls per day to
justify our existence. The citizens pay for
us to be there in their time of need. To
properly do this requires the county to
invest in us. There are many stations
where each unit exceeds the “sweet
spot.” Reducing our response times
which are currently around 9 minutes,
to 6 minutes (the industry standard) is
going to take effort by all of us because 9
minutes is a long time to hold your breath.
For the purposes of this article, I accessed the following documents for information:
1: Report to Evaluate the Long-Term Provision of Police and
Fire Service in South Miami-Dade County – Directive 230441
2: Community Risk Assessment – Standards of Cover Report
March 2020
3: FY 2023-24 Proposed Budget and Multi-Year Capital Plan
Blackhearts
The Blackheart Extrication Team competes and wins
representing Miami-Dade Fire Rescue at the 2023 World
Rescue Organization World Rescue Challenge in Spain
January 2024 | JUMPLINE Magazine