From the Office of Fire Chief
Christopher M. Fay
Lake Saint Louis Fire Protection District
2014 Annual Report Overview
As the newly appointed Chief for the Lake Saint Louis Fire Protection District I am honored
to lead this fine organization into the future and make emergency services for our citizens
the best it can possibly be. My family moved to Lake St. Louis in 1973 and lived on Rue
Grand for over 40 years. I have a genuine love for this community and I am committed to
advancing our services to meet the growing demand of our district's needs.
The Lake Saint Louis Fire Protection District of St. Charles County, Missouri was created in
1972. Bordered by Interstate 70 to the north and Highway 40/61 to the west and south we
cover an area of approximately 7 square miles and protect a population of about 14,000
persons. The Fire District consists of roughly 25 reserve members, a full-time staff of 12
and a part-time administrative assistant. A three-person elected Board of Directors oversees the operation of the District.
The District is comprised of two divisions: Administrative and Operations. The administrative division provides human resources, future planning, research, loss prevention, budgeting and accounting, record keeping, inventory control, government relations and fire prevention/code enforcement. The Operations division provides emergency services, departmental training, public fire education, child car seat checks/installations and equipment
and facilities maintenance.
For 2014, the district levied a general operating property tax rate of $0.5371 and a pension
tax rate of $0.0280. Property tax revenue collected for the year 2014, fees from inspections and permits and bank interest produced operating revenue of approximately
$1,345,946 for the year. The District’s expenses for the year were approximately
$1,496,355. The annual fiscal audit of the district’s books, conducted by an outside and
independent firm, will be completed within the next few months at which time exact numbers will be available. Copies of the audit report will be available for public review once
completed.
The Board of Directors, staff, officers and firefighters would like to thank you for your interest in the fire district. We would like to ensure you that we are committed to constant
improvement, customer service, and to providing the best fire protection and emergency
services possible to the community.
Sincerely,
Christopher M. Fay
Fire Chief
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Lake Saint Louis Fire Protection District
Table of Contents
Conclusions and Assumptions
4
Mission Statement
5
Organizational Chart
6
Facilities
7
Pumpers & Vehicles
8
Call Volume
10
Call Summary
12
Types of Situations Found
13
Structure Fires
14
Area of Origin / Ignition
15
Alarms by Station
16
Incidents by Time of Day
18
Automatic / Mutual Aid
19
Average Response Time
20
Alarm Responses per Member
21
Training
24
Inspections / Permits
28
Satisfaction Survey
31
Public Relations
32
3
Conclusions and Assumptions
The Lake Saint Louis Fire Protection District will use the information contained in this
report as one of many tools in planning for the future. Some of the conclusions and
assumptions that we have made and continue to use as a guide are as follows:
•
The National Fire Protection Association, Federal and State Government and others
will continue to implement additional standards and requirements that the District
will be obligated to follow for either legal or moral reasons. This will have a direct
affect on the way we handle emergency situations, allocate resources and administer the overall operation of the District.
•
The Lake Saint Louis Fire Protection District responded to 1336 alarms in 2014, or
an average of 3.66 calls per day. This was an increase of 71 alarms over 2013’s total
of 1265.
•
The quicker trained emergency responders can arrive on the scene of an incident,
the better the chances at limiting or reducing permanent health problems or property damage. With this in mind, it is the desire of the District to improve its response time each year. The In-District emergency response time in 2014 was 6:03
minutes, up from 5:56 minutes in 2013 and its overall emergency response time
was up from 6:59 in 2013 to 7:00 in 2014.
•
Although the Lake Saint Louis Fire Protection District is primarily responsible for
protecting only a small portion of the County, compared to the 10 other fire districts and department in the County, we are still subjected to our share of increased
demands for services from all divisions of the District.
•
The St. Charles County Ambulance District has primary responsibility for emergency
medical care throughout most of St. Charles County including the residents of the
Lake Saint Louis Fire Protection District. Due to manpower and equipment limitations and increased call volume, the Ambulance District continues to rely heavily on
all fire service agencies throughout the County for assistance.
•
Statistics and customer comments are the only accurate measuring tools when
judging the quality of service we deliver to our citizens.
4
Lake Saint Louis Fire Protection District
Mission Statement
5
6
Facilities
Station #1 - 2533 Lake Saint Louis Boulevard
District Headquarters & location of all district business offices
Houses 1998 American LaFrance Pumper, 2005 Light Duty
Rescue Truck, 2000 Low modified V-bottom rescue boat and
trailer and a 2005 Pick-up.
Living quarters for reserve firefighters
Station #2 - 26 South Ellerman Road
Houses 2003 American LaFrance Pumper on a 1998 chassis
and a 1991 Seagrave Reserve Pumper
Living quarters for career firefighters
7
Pumpers & Vehicles
9224
2003 American LaFrance Pumper on 1998 chassis
2014 ending mileage = 152,878
9214
9224
1998 American LaFrance Pumper
2014 ending mileage = 86,950
9294
1991 Seagrave Pumper
2014 ending mileage = 64,707
8
Pumpers & Vehicles
9229
2005 Light Duty Rescue Truck
2014 ending mileage = 15,577
9219
2005 Pick up
2014 ending mileage = 105,479
9299
Not pictured is a 2010 Chevrolet Tahoe
which is the Fire Chief’s vehicle.
2014 ending mileage = 70,852
2000 Lowe modified V-bottom rescue boat
9
Percentage of Call Volume over 10 years
10
If the district was to continue to average a 5.3% increase in call volume,
call volume would look like this in the future:
11
The National Fire Incident Reporting System was established by the National Fire Data Center of the United States Fire Administration (USFA), a division of the Federal
Emergency Management Agency. The classifications listed below are derived from
the NFIRS.
EMS/Rescue calls continue to account for the majority of alarms in which the Lake
Saint Louis Fire Protection District is dispatched, arrived on scene and provide assistance. As a result of reporting changes required at the national level, Good Intent
calls continue to be significantly higher. For example, if the District is dispatched to a
vehicle fire and once on the scene find only a vehicle experiencing mechanical problems then, then this call is entered as a Good Intent call—specifically “mistaken for
smoke.” Likewise if dispatched to assist another agency as a Good Intent call, specifically “cancelled en route”, and not as the nature of the alarm that was dispatched.
12
Below is an overview of the Type of Situation Found over the last five years.
13
Statistics of Fires Involving Structures
Assembly = Ballroom, Gymnasium, Church, Clubhouse, Restaurant, Etc.
Health Care = Hospital, Nursing Home, Police Station, Etc.
Residential = 1 and 2 Family Dwelling, Multifamily Dwelling, Hotel, Etc.
Business = Mercantile, Gas Station, Dry Cleaners, General Retail, Office Building, Etc.
Storage = Outside material or vehicle storage area or an outbuilding or shed
14
Area of Origin
Cause of Ignition
15
Alarms by Station
All Calls
Lake Saint Louis Fire Protection District is broke down into two zones for the two fire stations
that we have. All calls are coded based on what zone they fall in. This is a breakdown for all
calls ran in 2014 based on those zones.
16
Alarms by Station
Lake Saint Louis District
This graph represents the zones of all calls that were ran in 2014 that were located within the
Lake Saint Louis Fire Protection District.
17
The following charts show the breakdown of the number of calls ran in 2014
based on the time of day.
18
With the creation of the Statewide mutual aid plan and the commitment of our district, as well as the commitment from our neighboring districts, Wentzville and
O’Fallon, to provide the best service to the citizens of our communities as quick as
possible, we have all agreed to respond the closest unit or units available to all true
emergency alarms regardless of district boundaries. Likewise, the Computer Aided
Dispatch System (CAD), at the County Dispatch Center, is now online to aid in this
effort.
19
Average Response Time
All EM = All Emergency Calls
District EM = In District Emergency Calls Only
Alarm time is recorded as the time the Fire District receives the alarm until the
time the first unit arrives on scene, excluding officers. Separate response times
are calculated for all calls responded to by the District, including mutual aid, as
well as just those in the district.
20
Alarm Responses Per Member
The Lake Saint Louis Fire Protection District finished 2014 with
10 career firefighters (including the Fire Chief) and 26 members
of our Reserve Staff.
The combined total number of calls ran by the 36 personnel
members listed above was 4,135. This is an average of 114.86
calls per district member.
The career staff ran a combined total of 3,559 calls in 2014 with
an average of 355.90 calls per member.
The reserve staff ran a total of 576 calls in 2014 with an average of 22.15 per calls per member.
21
Lake Saint Louis Fire Protection District
2014 Alarm Response Per Member
Status
Name
Number of Alarms
Career
Steele, David
470
Career
Gussner, Clinton
433
Career
Leffeler, Brad
430
Career
Rogers, Kenton
398
Career
Darnell, Justin
380
Career
Hughes, Jason
370
Career
Carroll, Mike
343
Career
Morrow, Joe
277
Career
Terranova, Mike
236
Career
Fay, Chris
222
Reserve
Miller, Blake
96
Reserve
Vester, Tim
74
Reserve
Aleto, Justin
57
Reserve
Tichy, Justin
37
Reserve
Burnham, Chris
30
Reserve
Perkins, Alex
30
Reserve
Devine, Alex
30
Reserve
Graham, Clayton
27
22
Lake Saint Louis Fire Protection District
2014 Alarm Response Per Member
Status
Name
Number of Alarms
Reserve
Johnson, Chris
21
Reserve
Shew, Trevor
21
Reserve
Robertson, Gary
20
Reserve
Bushdiecker, Don
16
Reserve
Lembke, Scott
16
Reserve
Wright, Adam
14
Reserve
Lewis, Dave
12
Reserve
Binsbacher, James
11
Reserve
Bresnahan, Russell
10
Reserve
Rainey, Harlen
10
Reserve
Hill, Chris
9
Reserve
Meagher, Aaron
8
Reserve
Busa, David
7
Reserve
Thomas, Brad
7
Reserve
Ulses, Nick
5
Reserve
Magrecki, Adam
4
Reserve
Sarni, Jared
4
Reserve
Ward, Tim
3
23
Training Statistics
During 2014 there were a total of 35 district members that contributed
to the 4,934 hours of training that were completed. That is an average
of 140.97 hours per member of the district.
Of those members, 10 are part of our career staff. Their total training
hours were 1,531 total averaging out to 153.10 hours per member.
The other 25 members were from our reserve staff. Their total training
hours were 3,403 averaging 136.12 hours per reserve member.
The members of the Lake Saint Louis Fire Protection District are
trained in a number skills through out the year. Aside from countless
hours of fire training, St. Charles County Ambulance District provides
our members with EMS training on a monthly basis. The district
members are also trained in specialty topics such as: Self Contained
Breathing Apparatus (SCBA), ladder training, firefighter rescue, hose
deployment and hydraulics, ice and water rescue, vehicle extrication,
pumper operations, boat operations, hazardous materials response,
building construction, fire attack and behavior.
24
25
Lake Saint Louis Fire Protection District
2014 Training Hours
Status
Name
Hours
Reserve
Bresnahan, Russell
596.5
Career
Terranova, Mike
486
Reserve
Meagher, Aaron
377.5
Reserve
Johnson, Chris
359.5
Reserve
Shew, Trevor
345.5
Career
Leffeler, Brad
215
Reserve
Miller, Blake
192
Reserve
Vester, Tim
158
Reserve
Busa, David
152
Reserve
Tichy, Justin
150.5
Reserve
Bushdiecker, Don
144
Reserve
Robertson, Gary
129
Career
Steele, David
116.5
Career
Gussner, Clinton
110
Reserve
Perkins, Alex
102
Reserve
Lewis, Dave
101
Career
Hughes, Jason
95.5
Reserve
Hill, Chris
94
26
Lake Saint Louis Fire Protection District
2014 Training Hours
Status
Name
Hours
Career
Carroll, Mike
92
Reserve
Graham, Clayton
92
Career
Darnell, Justin
89
Reserve
Devine, Alex
88.5
Reserve
Aleto, Justin
87.5
Reserve
Burnham, Chris
74
Reserve
Binsbacher, Jim
71
Career
Rogers, Kenton
68.5
Career
Fay, Chris
59.5
Career
Morrow, Joe
54.5
Reserve
Wright, Adam
52.5
Reserve
Lembke, Scott
39
Reserve
Rainey, Harlen
32.5
Reserve
Magrecki, Adam
32
Reserve
Sarni, Jared
28
Reserve
Ulses, Nick
25
Reserve
Ward, Tim
24
27
Permits and Inspections
Commercial
Residential
Building Permits
10
Building Permits
1
Final Construction Inspections
13
Final Construction Inspections
3
Re-Inspections
Rough Construction Inspections
Re-Inspections
Existing Building Inspections
Occupancy Permits
Notice of Violations
Special Inspections
Knox Box Inspections
8
45
26
545
Re-Inspections
1
Rough Construction Inspections
4
Re-Inspections
3
Occupancy Inspections
180
Re-Inspections
91
Rental Inspections
61
545
110
Re-Inspections
28
Total Occupancy Permits
241
210
4
Note: City Inspector now handles permits and
construction inspections.
28
29
Residential Inspections
30
Satisfaction Survey
•
Surveys are mailed out to citizens who live within the district who have utilized the
Lake Saint Louis Fire Protection District services.
•
Surveys ask for a ranking of the district in 5 categories based on a scale of 1 to 10
where 1 is the lowest and 10 is the highest.
•
There is also a place for additional comments or to recognize a particular staff
member.
105 surveys were mailed between 1/1/14 and 12/31/14
68 surveys were returned with a response.
Average Ratings for 2014
Promptness…..9.80
Treatment…..9.98
Knowledge…..9.94
Informed…..10.00
Some of the responses received:
“The responders were professional , efficient and
“Very courteous & excellent service! Took the
excellent in all ways. I am very proud of them!”
time to search the whole house & make sure
everything was safe. Great job to all three fire-
“We feel so blessed to have such a competent
fighters.”
& professional fire station so close to our
home. The entire staff is exceptional!!!”
“As always our fire dept. continues to take excel-
“We as a city, should be very proud of our fire department personnel. I am!”
lent care of us with an aire of warm customer ser-
“These three men were so understanding &
vice.”
reassuring, I wouldn’t hesitate to call again.”
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PUBLIC RELATIONS
32
Public Fire Education / Interaction
Events
Every year the Lake Saint Louis Fire Protection
District hosts an Open House/Safety Day in
In 2014 the district began having movie nights
October. The event is designed to show case
at station 1. It is held the last Saturday of the
our station and equipment as well as promote
month in the engine bay. A new movie is
safety awareness for emergency situations.
shown each month and free popcorn and
The district staff works together to make sure
snow cones are provided.
it is a fun filled educational day for all.
Every year there is a week in December that
the fire truck escorts Santa and his reindeer
through the streets of the district to visit all
the residents during the holiday season.
Aside from the events listed above, Lake Saint Louis Fire Protection District
also participates in the following events each year:
Polar Bear Plunge Standby Daycare Visits and Safety
Easter Egg Hunt
Block Parties—National
Night Out
Summer Kick off/Back to
School Event @ the LSL
Community Association
Talks
Memorial Day Services
St. Charles County Demolition Derby Standby
Triathlon Standby
Fourth of July Fireworks
Scouting Events
MDA Fundraising
PR events at The Meadows
LSL Mother’s Club Christmas Party
Ski Show Standby
33
Lake Saint Louis Fire Protection District also offers the following:
♦
C.E.R.T. Community Emergency Response Team Training
♦
Smoke Detector Check, Battery Installation, Battery Operated Smoke
Detector Installation
♦
Child Safety Seat Installation and Safety Check
♦
Fire Safety Education
♦
Station Tours
♦
Emergency Beacon Program
♦
Assistance with Developing Home Fire Escape Plans
♦
Ride-A-Long Program
♦
Safe Place
♦
Caring and Sharing Drop Off Location
The Lake Saint Louis Fire Protection District members take great pride in the relationships we develop with our citizens. We understand the importance of trust and
how that directly affects how we are viewed. That trust is something we do not take
for granted and we work tirelessly to strengthen the bond we have with our community. We are looking forward to 2015 and beyond as we enhance our public relations and community outreach programs which will not only benefit us as a district but more importantly you as citizens.
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