OH Fire Department Sets Sights on New Ambulance

ASHTABULA, OH—A new ambulance, a rescue boat response team and a lot of fireworks seem to be in the future of the Ashtabula Fire Department.

As part of his capital plan, Chief Shawn Gruber is first looking to buy a new ambulance this year.

The ambulance Gruber wants to replace is 11 years old.

“It is at the end of its life as a first-out unit,” he said. “It will be moved to second out to get some more life out of it.”

When it comes to ambulance calls, responses rose from 824 in 2016 to 982 last year, Gruber said.

As for equipment, firefighters put the new Sutphen pumper truck into service a year ago.

“It was a very welcome addition to the fleet,” he said. “The 2006 Sutphen pumper was moved to the second-out position to extend the service life to the city.”

The Fire Department also is looking forward to July 25 for the city’s annual Wine and Walleye Festival’s fireworks show, sponsored by the firefighter’s union.

“The show has become a must see to the area,” Gruber said. “The third annual Wine and Walleye Festival’s fireworks display, sponsored by the firefighter’s union was the biggest display to date.”

Gruber also has his eye on the Coast Guard Ashtabula station in the Ashtabula Harbor, as it continues to reduce its hours.

“The current plan is Memorial Day to Labor Day, leaving much of the boating season unmanned and leaving our waters covered by the Fairport station,” he said. “We will be working with the Ashtabula Police Department this year to form a rescue boat response to protect our citizens during the gap months the Coast Guard station is not manned.”

The Fire Department also bought ice rescue equipment and developed a plan to respond to ice rescue emergencies in the winter. Training is ongoing during the winter months, Gruber said.

The fire station is a busy place, with calls for fire, rescue, medical and fire prevention, Gruber said.

In the past three years, the department’s total number of incidents went up from 1,926 in 2016, to 2,107 in 2019, while the number of structure fires remained about the same for an average of 52, according to Gruber’s annual report.

Of 2,107 incidents, 607 of them originated from the center of the city, followed by the west side of the Ashtabula Harbor at 571.

The total fire loss in 2019 was $1.5 million, according to the report.

“While $1.5 million in fire loss may seem significant, the pre-incident value of the properties involved is about $72,000,” he said. “This equates to a 2 percent loss to all properties involved in fire during the 2019 calendar year.”

There were no civilian fire deaths in 2016 and 2017, three deaths in 2018 and one last year, according to his report.

Fire Prevention Capt. Stephen Chase reports four of last year’s fires required lengthy arson investigations.

“Determination of the cause of fire is the highest priority of the Fire Prevention Bureau,” he said. “These investigations are estimated to have required 400 man hours and resulted in multiple felony convictions.”

In addition, the $474 million Petmin pig iron plant project planning to open this summer in Ashtabula expanded in 2019 to include fire protection systems, Chase said.

“Petmin submitted and revised its fire protection plan multiple times in 2019,” he said. “The plan, in excess of 500 pages, required extensive review and comment.”

The Fire Prevention Bureau will continue to work with the Ashtabula County Building Department and Petmin in 2020 to simplify and streamline its fire protection plan/systems and the entire construction process, Chase said.

Throughout the year, fire inspections are conducted to insure the city’s schools, commercial and industrial buildings are in compliance with the Ohio Fire Code and are operated in a manner that protects the public. Inspection activities encompass inspections and construction compliance.

In 2019, about 242 of these inspections were completed, he said.

The Fire Prevention Bureau also took note of 107 damaged utility poles in the city last year.

The Bureau, along with the City Solicitor’s office, issued citations to the Illuminating Company, Charter Communications and Windstream Communication. In response, the utility companies removed about 90 of the damaged utility poles.

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