[Scan-DC] New Fire Stations in Howard County

[Doug Walton]

Check out the press release (reposted below). It's also on Howard County's
site, located at http://www.howardcountymd.gov/News/News_20090330.htm . It's
also interesting to note that the current fire chief has been on the job for
30 days. 

NEWS RELEASE

March 30, 2009

Media Contact:
Kevin Enright, Director, Office of Public Information, 410-313-2022

Howard County Releases Details of New System to Improve Critical Emergency
Response Times

ELLICOTT CITY, MD - Howard County Executive Ken Ulman, together with Police
Chief William McMahon and Fire Chief William Goddard, held a press
conference today to address the critical nature of response times for
emergency medical calls and plans the County is implementing to improve
emergency services to the residents of Howard County.

The changes are being made in response to initial results of the Department
of Fire & Rescue Services' self-assessment. These initial findings indicated
that response times could be improved and identified challenges that
included the 9-1-1 dispatch process, an increase in the number of concurrent
calls for service throughout the County, and the amount of service area each
fire station must cover, especially in the northeast and west areas of the
County.

"There is no question that quick response times are critical when you are
dealing with emergencies, especially when you consider that nearly 70
percent of all calls to 9-1-1 are for emergency medical treatment and could
be life saving," said Executive Ulman. "We need to be sure we have the
services and the public safety personnel in place to meet the increasing
demands of a growing county and answer those calls for help as quickly as we
can - whatever area of the county those calls come from."

To address the concerns identified through the self-assessment, the County's
Police Department, which oversees 9-1-1 Communications Center, worked with
the Department of Fire & Rescue to pilot a new dispatch process which
changes the way information is collected from the caller and gets responders
on the road in less time.

"In the first 45 days since this system has been implemented, the time it
takes to dispatch a call has been reduced by approximately one minute," said
Police Chief William McMahon. "When you are dealing with life threatening
emergencies, every second counts."

In addition to the new 9-1-1 dispatch process, funding for two new stations,
which will address the other challenge identified through the
self-assessment - the need to reduce the distance responders must travel to
provide emergency services, is included as part of the proposed FY10 Capital
Budget.

The first station will be in Glenwood, an existing project identified as a
previous need that will now receive full funding - $3.5 million. The station
will be located in the complex that already houses the Glenwood Community
Center and Glenwood Branch of the Howard County Library. Though it will be
built as a long-term facility with three bays, it will be designed and built
based on a modular structure that reduces construction costs by millions of
dollars.

The second new station will be located at the Mayfield Highway Maintenance
Shop and will include a logistics area where the Department of Fire & Rescue
will house specialized equipment. The Mayfield Station will cost an
estimated $4.5 million and will operate until a new fire station at the
intersection of Routes 1 and 175 in Jessup is complete. The logistics area
will remain at Mayfield. Initial findings in the Department's assessment
study show that this location will help meet the growing demand for service
along I-95 and the Route 1 Corridor, and help the County prepare for the
impact of BRAC.

Land development at the future re-location site on Route 1 near Route 32 for
the Savage Volunteer Fire Department will begin in FY2010; construction
funding for that project will be included in the FY2011 budget.

"As Howard County grows, the Department of Fire & Rescue Services faces
enormous challenges," said Fire Chief William Goddard. "This self-assessment
gives us a chance to re-evaluate the way we do our job and take a close look
at the resources we have at our disposal. While we hope most people never
have to make that call to 9-1-1, we need to be ready to respond to every
community, in every part of Howard County, as quickly as we can."

-----Original Message-----
From: scan-dc-bounces at mailman.qth.net
[mailto:scan-dc-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Doug Kitchener
Sent: Tuesday, March 31, 2009 8:34 AM
To: scan-dc at mailman.qth.net
Subject: [Scan-DC] New Fire Stations in Howard County


I just heard on the radio news (WBJC Baltimore) that Howard County plans to
build two new fire stations and hire 8 new 911 operators, in order to cut
response times.  News story said that the new stations will be "scaled-down
versions" of a standard fire station (?) and will cost between $3 & $4
million each - no other details.

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