Crime & Safety
3 Issues Facing the Geneva Fire Department
Geneva Patch visited the community's movers and shakers and asked them to name their top challenges. Here are some of the fires Chief Steve Olson would like to put out.
The Geneva Fire Department has been around since Feb. 9, 1895. Fire Chief Steve Olson's been a part of its history for the past 36 years. He is passionate about his job and particularly proud of the professionals and volunteers who serve the community through their work with the Fire Department.
Geneva Patch didn't turn down the heat for Olson or any of the public officials and civic leaders we interviewed for this series of stories. We asked point-blank, without time for preparation, for them to name their top three challenges. Sometimes the best and most accurate responses are the ones that come to mind first.
Here are the Olson's responses to the "Big 3" question. The words are his, the subtitles are ours.
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(1) Now you're getting technical
"The aspect of technical rescue (vehicle extrication, water rescue, hazardous materials cleanup) and training is presenting us a challenge," Olson said. "That's significant training and costs that have evolved over time as awareness has grown and technology has developed. It used to be two guys with a rope; now it's several for every rescue, with different types of equipment. It's just a sign of the times."
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(2) Baby, you can drive my car
"Being able to replace equipment in a timely manner (is No. 2 on the list.) With budgets the way they are, it's tougher to find the funding. And unfortunately, this stuff is not cheap.
"Our oldest vehicle is 26 years old. You know anyone who drives a 26-year-old car? Try finding parts. Sometimes you have to do some custom work to get new parts to fit in the old framework. (For example:) All the compartment doors on Engine 208. We ended up replacing eight of the doors on it."
(3) All you've got to do is call
"Paid-on-call strength" was Olson's third concern. Many suburban communities rely heavily on paid-on-call firefighters to round out their roster. Geneva had 27 full-time firefighters and 45 paid-on-call firefighters as of July 2010.
"If we don't regularly maintain the hiring schedule, you have to skip a year because of training, and it takes two years to catch up," Olson said.
