| Captain/Paramedic Hale Fitzgerald |
2021 brought unique challenges to the New Gloucester Fire Rescue Department, and our dedicated members were there to answer the call. Below is a year in review when it comes to incident statistics and training.
Incident Statistics
2021 was by far our busiest year in the nearly 100-year history of our Department. We responded to 667 calls for service. Of the 667 calls, 503 were EMS in nature (include motor vehicle accidents), and 164 were fire-related. This is an increase from 2020, in which we responded to 619 calls (396 EMS and 223 fire).
Below shows the volume of calls since 2017. To date, our busiest three years have been 2021 with 667 calls, 2020 with 619 calls, and 2017 with 616 calls.
Here is a breakdown of 2021’s incidents:
EMS Calls
NGFR responded to 503 EMS-related calls in 2021. This number not only includes our 424 patients experiencing a medical emergency, but 79 motor vehicle accidents. Our EMS providers started 187 IVs, performed 109 twelve-lead electrocardiograms, monitored 91 cardiac rhythms, applied 20 cervical collars, and assisted ventilations 11 times with a bag-valve mask. Our EMS providers also administered supplemental oxygen 42 times, ondansetron (Zofran) 27 times, fentanyl 25 times, aspirin 14 times, nitroglycerin 13 times, epinephrine 1:10,000 11 times, and naloxone (Narcan) 11 times.
We transported 295 patients to local hospitals (approximately 59% of our EMS-related calls and 44% of our total call volume). A transport to Lewiston (CMMC or St. Mary’s) is about a 1.5-to-2-hour call from dispatch to restocked and in service at the station. A transport to Portland (Maine Med or Mercy) is about a 2-to-3-hour call from dispatch to restocked and in service at the station. These time gaps are when EMS response relies on a combination of EMS providers responding from home and a mutual aid ambulance.
Using two hours as the average transport turnaround time, New Gloucester’s ambulance was unavailable for calls due to transporting a patient approximately 590 hours in 2021 (equivalent to roughly 24.5 days). In 2021, we had calls that overlapped 35 times.
Fire Calls
NGFR responded to 27 fires in 2021, including 10 building fires. The other 17 fires included vehicle fires, grass fires, brush fires, cooking fires, and rubbish fires. On average, we respond to 2.25 fires per month. We responded to 59 calls that ended up being false calls in nature. The majority of these are fire alarm activations. While no emergency ends up being found, our members respond professionally and investigate to ensure the occupancy is safe. Other calls we respond to include gas leaks, wires down, odor investigations, and even animal rescues. The wide variety of calls we responded to in 2021 reinforces the “all hazards” approach of the modern fire service. Our members are ready to respond to any emergency and fix a wide variety of problems at any moment.
Mutual Aid
Mutual Aid increased significantly from last year. In 2020, we gave aid 27 times and received aid 28 times. In 2021, we gave aid 49 times and received aid 53 times. This trend is part in due to many incidents requiring manpower that a single fire department cannot provide on their own. Building fires, vehicle extrications, severe medical calls, and overlapping calls when New Gloucester’s ambulance (A1) is transporting a patient are just some of the examples which require towns to provide aid to each other.
Member Responses
Our response model at the New Gloucester Fire Rescue Department involves two EMS provider/firefighters at the station 24/7, and a supplemental response from our call company. A fulltime chief works office hours and provides additional response capabilities. During our period this year without a chief, the rest of the command staff often would work to ensure administrative duties were complete and there was an additional member to respond.
Our dedicated call company is the engine that drives this department. They sacrifice time away from their families out of pride for the job and the duty to serve others. Being a call company firefighter is a rewarding way to put service over self and give back to the community. If interested, please reach out to the fire station at 207-926-4142 to talk to us about joining our team. If going inside a burning building is not for you, there are plenty of positions that we could use help with.
Our top call company responders for 2021 are:
— Lieutenant Chris Gill, 93 calls
— Firefighter Jared Schwartz, 93 calls
— Junior Firefighter Traedon Schwartz, 55 calls
— Firefighter Zachary Lerette, 44 calls
— Firefighter Garrett Haskins, 31 calls
Thank you and all call company responders for your continued dedication to our community.
COVID-19 Response
COVID has continued to be a large impact on our responses, especially for medical emergencies. In 2020, we responded to 28 suspected cases of COVID-19 and two confirmed cases of COVID-19. In 2021, we responded to 25 suspected cases of COVID-19 and 18 confirmed cases of COVID-19. Of our 2021 COVID responses, 14 of our confirmed COVID cases occurred in the last quarter of the year. Please be vigilant as COVID-19 continues to be a very real public health threat to our community.
Incidents of Note
March: 21-NG0114: Motor Vehicle Accident on Intervale Road involving a truck and a train. Patient was heavily entrapped. Crews worked to extricate the patient and care was transferred to Life Flight. Life Flight was able to land their helicopter at the ball fields on Intervale Road near the scene for a quick transfer of care.
April: 21-NG0147: EMS Call involving a patient who was in cardiac arrest on Lewiston Road. Patient was resuscitated and transported to CMMC with a pulse for definitive care.
April: 21-NG0153: ATV Rollover with two trauma patients on Targett Road. First arriving responders triaged the patients, with Ambulance 1 rapidly transporting the most critically injured patient who CMMC. Poland Squad 1 responded mutual aid for the second patient.
April: 21-NG0154: Working structure fire for a shed fire with extension to the yard. Companies quickly knocked down the flames to prevent further spread.
May: 21-NG0190: Rollover involving a tractor trailer hauling propane. Companies worked with DEP to ground and bond the trailer for a safe offload of the product prior to the truck being righted and towed away.
May: 21-NG0209: Engine 3 and crew responded to Auburn for a 3-Alarm fire on Turner Street. Crews worked on scene for over four hours before returning.
May: 21-NG0213: All Hands fire involving a shed and 1.5 acres on Pond Road. Companies worked quickly to contain the spread of the fire and extinguish the area involved.
July: 21-NG0289: Ambulance 1 responded for a cyclist who was run over by a pickup truck hauling a trailer on Intervale Road. Ambulance 1 transported the patient to a level 1 trauma center, delivering them to definitive care within 45 minutes from time of dispatch.
August: 21-NG0362: Extrication of a patient who had a tractor fall on them on Mayall Road. EMS crews aggressively managed this trauma patient and rapidly transported him to a trauma center. The patient had a positive outcome. Patient later was able to visit the responders who aided him, a reunion that all involved were excited to be a part of.
August: 21-NG0367: Engine 3 and Tank 1 responded mutual aid to Raymond for a multiple alarm building fire, working for hours on an extremely hot summer day.
August: 21-NG0375: Engine 2 and Engine 3 responded to the Maine Turnpike to assist Gray at a rollover with ejection and heavy entrapment. Crews worked with Gray to help extricate the patient.
August: 21-NG0385: Crews worked to extricate a patient heavily entrapped after a motor vehicle accident on Bennett Road. Life Flight responded via ground ambulance to assist on scene due to poor flying weather. Gray also assisted. The patient was removed after an extended extrication and had a positive outcome at the hospital.
October: 21-NG0523: Engine 2 and Ambulance 1 responded to a motor vehicle accident on Snow Hill Road. Crews rapidly extricated the patient within 10 minutes of arriving on scene, allowing the patient to arrive at a trauma center in a timely manner.
November: 21-NG0546: Engine 3 and crew responded mutual aid to North Yarmouth for a 3-alarm commercial building fire. Companies operated on scene for four hours before returning to New Gloucester.
Training
Training was a large part of 2021 for the New Gloucester Fire Rescue Department as well. We held 89 training sessions for the year, offering 168 class hours. Cumulatively, our members put in 1,061 total student hours of training.
In 2021, our training program focused on driver training and development. We are fortunate to have Firefighter Roger Lund, a certified instructor for EVOC (Emergency Vehicle Operator Course), on our department. With coordination between Firefighter Lund and the Maine Fire Service Institute, we were able to host a class in which six of our members attained certification to drive fire apparatus. Our training group then spent many hours to get our individuals both apparatus drive time and pump time to be signed off to operate. This has helped our call company responses significantly.
Another highlight of 2021’s training was an increase of training with mutual aid partners, specifically Gray Fire Rescue. Training together has increased efficiency on calls where mutual aid is given or received. Training goals for 2022 include:
— Advanced firefighting tactics include search and rescue, hose line operation, forcible entry, and rapid intervention (rescuing of a downed firefighter).
— Continuation of driver training, with a focus on having more members safely operate more apparatus as needed.
— Training on technical rescue emergencies such as cold-water rescue, low-angle rope rescue, and vehicle extrication.
— Training with Mutual Aid partners on a more regular basis.
In conclusion, 2021 gave us our busiest year to date. Our members continued to respond, improve their craft, and grow as a department with one common goal: to give the Town of New Gloucester the best fire and EMS response we can. Having dedicated individuals such as these is a great asset for the community. We wish everyone well in 2022 and we are always ready to respond when needed.
