Amesbury Fire Department - Mission Statement

MISSION:

The mission of the Amesbury Fire Department is interrelated with the mission and services of other departments within the Town and public safety agencies within and outside Essex County, to serve and protect the community in the most professional manner. This mission includes:

To continuously evaluate and improve the quality of fire suppression service to the Town of Amesbury.
To continuously reduce the actual number and severity of fire incidentsx through a strong commitment to fire prevention.
To enhance the health of the community through the provision of highly responsive and effective emergency medical services.
To protect the community through monitoring and response to hazardous materials incidents.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

The Amesbury Fire Department, as established under Article 5 of the Amesbury Town Charter, has seven major functional areas of responsibility:

FIRE PREVENTION :

To prevent fires through inspection of properties for compliance with State and Local By-Laws.
To utilize all available means to decrease the incidence of uncontrolled fire, including:
Engineering - Review design plans for code violations
Education - To instruct and inform the public
Code Enforcement - To use legal means to correct discrepancies from the codes
Fire Investigation - To identify areas for future educationor legislation to assist in correction of problems.

FIRE SUPPRESSION:

To suppress fires in order to prevent the loss of life and property.
To provide life safety rescue services.
To confine fire to its place of origin.
To extinguish fires.
To provide mutual aid to neighboring communities as needed. (In return we receive the same mutual aid support.)

EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES:

To provide Emergency Ambulance Service for basic life support.
To transport Priority 1, 2, and 3 patients to Emergency Care Facilities located outside Town limits.
To respond to working fire and haz mat incidents to stand by for emergency services.
To provide a first aid station at selected Town events.
To administer the Emergency Services Revolving Account

HAZARDOUS MATERIALS INCIDENTS:

To provide First Responders to Hazardous Materials Incidents and take appropriate action to protect lives and the environment.
To enforce State and Local Codes regarding Hazardous Materials.
To provide L1, L2 and L3 incident awareness and training.
To coordinate actions and work with various State agencies in dealing with Hazardous Materials Incidents.

MAINTENANCE:

To maintain all fire apparatus.
To coordinate necessary maintenance by outside vendors.
To develop appropriate replacement schedule for Fire apparatus.

FIRE ADMINISTRATION:

General and specific administration of the permanent, fulltime Fire Department and Call Volunteers.

To lead, plan, organize, and control Fire Dept. functions.
To develop and administer the Fire Dept. budget.
To conduct fire/arson investigations.
To administer and appropriately enforce State Statutes and Local Fire Codes.

DEPARTMENT LIAISON:

The Fire Dept. works closely with the following:
Amesbury Emergency Management Agency
Amesbury Police Department
Amesbury Public Works Department
Amesbury Building Department
Regional and State Agencies

FIRE ALARM DIVISION:

Maintains the municipal cable plant
Maintains and tests the fire alarm boxes
Maintains all town owned traffic signals
Reviews and approves fire alarm and sprinkler plans
Acceptance tests on all new systems
Maintains and test the fire alarm and sprinkler systems in all municipal buildings

STAFFING:

Chief: 1

Deputy Chief: 1

Lieutenants: 4

Firefighter/EMT: 22

Subtotal, Full-time: 28

Firefighter/Paramedic: 6

Part-time Call Firefighter:7

Total Staffing: 40