A national shortage of volunteers has spread to the Island’s fire departments, prompting some towns to offer more paid positions and rethink their staffing structure.

For years the Vineyard’s six fire departments have largely relied on a few full-time paid staff members and numerous volunteers. But the volunteer pool continues to thin as firefighters contend with the Island’s housing crisis, with some having to leave the Island and others working multiple jobs to make ends meet. Growing call volumes and new regulations that have increased training commitments have also added to the strain.  

Edgartown fire Chief Alex Schaeffer.

Ray Ewing

Edgartown fire Chief Alex Schaeffer.

Ray Ewing

Several chiefs said the shifting dynamics may require a change in how fire service is run on the Vineyard.

“We’re treading the line of a problem,” said Edgartown fire Chief Alex Schaeffer. 

Edgartown last month advertised a new full-time firefighter and EMT position after it lost two volunteers to other towns offering paid positions. Of the 30 total trained volunteer firefighters, only eight live in Edgartown year-round.

“I am very grateful for the town to allow us to hire another full-time person, but I look at it as a tourniquet stopping this bleed,” Chief Schaeffer said.

There have been calls to consider moving toward a more professional department in recent years. Nelson Wirtz, the former fire chief in Oak Bluffs who has stayed on in an advisory role, urged the select board before his retirement last year to consider a combination model for the fire department. It would have 24/7 round the clock paid firefighters and EMTs, with volunteers supplementing the department as needed. 

Many off-Island departments, including Chatham where Mr. Wirtz previously worked, have turned to this model to handle the increased call volume, while keeping the tradition of volunteer firefighters. 

“Oak Bluffs needs to be preparing and [looking] at a combination model, which is going to mean an increase in budget… because the model that we are currently using is not going to continue to work.” Mr. Wirtz said.

“Going to a combination model department does not take away from [volunteers’] dedication and their professionalism,” he added. “It’s simply volume.”

Several chiefs said that they have seen the number of calls increase on the Island in recent years as the population grows, and a change in smoke detectors sends alerts immediately to fire departments whenever they go off.

West Tisbury fire Chief Greg Pachico.

Ray Ewing

West Tisbury fire Chief Greg Pachico.

Ray Ewing

New fire standards have also meant more people are going on calls.

The National Fire Protection Association and the International Organization for Standardization set a standard that four people are needed to respond to automatic fire alarms to be able to affect a rescue mission. Last year, the Edgartown department responded to 802 of those calls. Forty per cent of all calls were at night.

More homeowners with smaller homes or short-term rentals are installing these systems as well, in part because insurance companies give them a deduction. 

“[Automatic alarm systems] work really well, but they also have a lot of false alarms going off from bug legs and dust – stuff like that,” said Chilmark fire Chief Jeremy Bradshaw.

Different departments have struggled with recruiting new volunteers to cover these increased calls. Since 2014, Chief Schaeffer said he’s noticed a dip in interest from younger generations, who outside of their demanding day jobs often don’t have the time to invest in increased training or on-call service.

“You’re not getting paid as an hourly employee,” he said. “You may have to have more technical expertise and more time devoted to ongoing training in your volunteer position than you do in your own primary job.”

Even some of the higher ranked positions have struggled to get qualified candidates. 

When Oak Bluffs fire Chief Stephen Foster was promoted from deputy chief to succeed Mr. Wirtz, all of the applicants to fill the deputy position lacked the proper qualifications, according to Mr. Wirtz, who was brought back in a fire inspection and technical advisor role. 

Mr. Foster was unavailable to comment on the department this week, but Mr. Wirtz said there are just three full-time EMTs in Oak Bluffs and 20 EMT volunteers.

“Even with that number of EMTs, there are times that we go below what I would consider reasonable staffing for the town,” Mr. Wirtz said. “We end up either paying overtime or cajoling somebody to work.”

Tisbury fire Chief Patrick Rolston.

Ray Ewing

Tisbury fire Chief Patrick Rolston.

Ray Ewing

Even up-Island, where there is the regionalized ambulance service, departments are feeling the effects of the firefighter shortage.

West Tisbury Chief Gregory Pachico said about 70 per cent of the 32 members are nearing retirement age. He anticipates that towns will need to provide full-time positions in the next 10 years to meet staffing needs.

“​​We’ll fight it as long as we possibly can and try to adapt without having to go that route,” Chief Pachico said. 

Most of the Island towns offer stipends for their volunteers that vary based on experience and training level. In Chilmark, firefighters are given a stipend once a year and Edgartown pays for each on-call shift.

Chief Schaeffer said he’s worried departments will start to compete with stipends, similar to how the shortage of officers is affecting police departments, and Mr. Wirtz expressed the same concern with full-time paid wages.

The West Tisbury department started to give volunteers stipends for experienced firefighters who respond to non-emergency calls roughly 20 years ago, Chief Pachico said, and the rate has slowly been increasing. 

“My goal is to gradually build that every year so we’re not killing the taxpayers,” Chief Pachico said. “Hopefully, the time comes that when we’re forced to that full-time role, we’ll be very close to [the] stipends in place, that it’s not going to make so much of a difference.”

While the shortage looms large, many department heads said a surge in interest from the Brazilian community is giving them hope.

Chief Bradshaw said the Chilmark department has 39 members and is in a good position, though they’re always looking to recruit more volunteers. Eight of the department’s on-call members are young Brazilians.

“It’s an immigrant Island,” Chief Bradshaw said. “From the ones I know [and] talked to, they want to be involved. They want to help out and they want to be a part of the community.”

The Tisbury fire department had six firefighters and three EMS volunteers sign-up since July.

“It was kind of shocking,” Tisbury Chief Patrick Rolston said of the recent wave of volunteers. 

Three of the new members in Tisbury are Brazilian. It is helpful to have Portuguese-speaking members on-staff since they can translate as-needed, Chief Rolston said. Still there are uphill battles for the community, as the Massachusetts municipal firefighter examination and EMT certification exams needed to work are not provided in Portuguese.

All of the Island fire chiefs were enthusiastic that the volunteers they have are holding down the fort for their communities. 

“The volunteers in Oak Bluffs are incredible,” Mr. Wirtz said. “They are amazing, they are dedicated. And they are dedicated not only to the fire department, but they are dedicated to their community, and their friends and their neighbors.”