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Atlanta Fire under 'emergency' situation
The city of Atlanta sometimes has to call on suburban fire departments to handle emergencies. These are not extreme incidents, but more the routine. The reason for this is a critical shortage of working fire trucks in Atlanta. This situation is now being called an emergency.
ATLANTA - Atlanta council member Dustin Hillis calls the shortage of fire trucks "an emergency."
Specifically, the chair of the Atlanta City Council’s public safety panel described what has led to so many trucks and ladders being out of service.
"Last week, we averaged fifteen pieces not on the street?" Hillis asked city bureaucrats, who are responsible for keeping the city fleet ready for the roads.
Nate Bailey, the fire union president, told FOX 5 Atlanta mutual aid has been activated over the past few weeks.
"We all support each other, but we shouldn't have to use mutual aid because we have two or three major fires at the same time," Bailey said.
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There are two primary issues impacting fire readiness.
There are new trucks and ladders coming, but the lead-time from purchase to pick-up is two years.
And Atlanta has a lot of old trucks by mileage.
The city garage is backed on maintenance.