Bridgeport, Ct Safety Officer

[nfd2004]

After several months without a Safety Officer, the City of Bridgeport, Ct and the firefighters union have reached an agreement to add a Safety Officer to each of its four platoons. The total manning per shift will now go from 61 to 62 Firefighters.

After the LODDs of two firefighters it was recommended that a Safety Officer be added to the on duty force. For a period of time, that position was filled using a member of the training division on weekdays, then hiring overtime officers for nights and weekends. After a brief time, the overtime position was eliminated. The second due Battalion was then assigned the Safety Officers position at an incident.

Now after an agreement reached and some transferring of funds, it is now possible to fund this full time position around the clock using 3 Lts and 1 Capt.

Safety Battalion 1 will be quartered at the Central Ave Firehouse.

 

[johnd248]

Thanks for that info Willy D; certainly makes sense and it is clear the city needs this position.

 

[fdny1075k]

Great news for the BFD! So glad they won the fight! They really deserve to get a good break.

Safety Officer 1 was a part-time position that was active as of last year. Then, the city suspended it and instead, 2 Battalions were sent on a Signal 29 instead of just the one, with the second Chief on the Box being the ISO, at least until Training arrived and took over. This stripped the city of a Battalion at every worker.

As of 08:00hrs., 04-13-13, the Safety Officer became a full-time position, running out of the quarters of Engine 6/Ladder 6/Battalion 2 on Central Ave., East End.