Planned cuts don’t sit well with fire association

REDLANDS - The Redlands Professional Firefighters Association is unhappy with budget cuts proposed for the Fire Department.Police Chief Jim Bueermann and Fire Chief Jim Drabinski have submitted budgets that satisfy City Manager N. Enrique Martinez’s mandate for more than $1.3 million in cuts. The Police Department will cut $660,000, while the Fire Department will cut $680,000.

Although public-safety departments are being asked to cut, Martinez’s proposed budget adds 14 positions to city staff, and $1.2 million in payroll expenditures.

Drabinski cut four management positions: deputy fire chief, chief fire investigator, a 40-hour training battalion chief position and a 40-hour emergency medical service-disaster preparedness battalion chief.

Terry Welsh, president of the Redlands Professional Firefighters Association, said the two battalion chief positions could adversely affect the safety of service-level firefighters.

Welsh said the 40-hour emergency medical service/disaster preparedness battalion chief position was created after trying to deal with emergency medical service issues from a service level.

Deputy Chief Larry Egan, whose retirement would be imminent if Martinez’s budget is accepted by the council, provides the firefighters leadership and a sense of history.

Egan said Chief Fire Investigator Rich Lindner, whose job may also be cut if the budget is accepted, has a knack for sniffing out arsonists, honed by years of experience.

Welsh said the Fire Department is staffed by many young firefighters who need the leadership of experienced personnel. According to information supplied by Welsh, the department has 26 employees with less than five years of experience, nine employees with five to 10 years of experience, eight employees with 10 to 15 years of experience and 11 employees with more than 20 years of experience.

Welsh said the elimination of leadership positions would hurt the department.

“I don’t want these cuts,” he said.

Martinez said that though he required budget cuts from the public safety departments, Drabinski made the decision of who to cut.

“I don’t like to micromanage,” Martinez said. “I told them I needed cuts and I let Chief Drabinski and (Police Chief) Bueermann decide where to cut.”

Martinez said cuts could have been made in other areas of the Fire Department, including the department’s three administrative assistants.

West Coast 911 firefighter news source - The San Bernardino County Sun