Willow Glen
Neighborhood Association
P. O. Box 7706,
San Jose CA 95150
408/294-WGNA
www.WGNA.net
June 17, 2008
Debra Figone, City Manager
City of San Jose
200 E. Santa Clara St.
San Jose, CA 95113
cc: Mayor Chuck Reed
San Jose City Council
Fire Chief Darryl Von Raesfeld
re: Hose Wagon at Fire Station 6, Willow Glen
Dear City Manager Figone,
Once again the City is considering discontinuing the use of the Hose Wagon at Fire Station number Six in Willow Glen, and once again we in the Willow Glen Neighborhood Association (WGNA) object.
We recognize that the Hose Wagon is perhaps a somewhat dated piece of equipment, not used elsewhere in San Jose. However, there are a number of unique considerations in Willow Glen that warrant maintaining it:
- Willow Glen is an old section of San Jose, with some narrow streets and perhaps some antiquated infrastructure.
- We understand that the ordinance that incorporated Willow Glen into San Jose back in 1936 guaranteed that San Jose would in perpetuity provide Willow Glen with a Hose Wagon.
- The main reason for keeping the hose wagon: according to contract, it comes with an extra person, providing Station 6 with a five-person crew. This is critical because, since Willow Glen is centrally located, it also serves at home for the Air Wagon, a city-wide resource that refills the breathing equipment used in support of major fires.
Willow Glen has a disproportionately large population of elderly residents, and also is the site of the well-used Willow Street/Bramhall Park: roughly 85% of the calls at Station 6 are for medical emergencies instead of fire-fighting. It takes at least four firefighters to fight a fire (two to enter the burning structure, two to remain outside in support and as emergency backup), but it takes only three to run the Standard Fire Engine for medical emergencies, and only two to run the Hose Wagon.
With the five positions, Willow Glen has appropriate coverage:
- Two people take the Hose Wagon in response to a medical call, leaving three in the station to run the Standard Fire Engine in case of a second call;
- When the Air Wagon is out on a major response anywhere in the City, three people remain behind, able to run either the Hose Wagon or Standard Engine for medical emergencies, and
- In case of fire, three people can go in to fight the fire while keeping the two outside as support / emergency backup.
If the Hose Wagon is eliminated, the position goes with it, and Station 6 is left with only four personnel. Then, when there is a major fire anywhere in the City requiring the Air Wagon, either there is a long delay while someone drives in from some other station to retrieve the Air Wagon, or else Station 6 is left with only two staff. As the Standard Engine takes three to operate it, the station would basically be left understaffed and unable to respond to calls of any type. Even now, parts of Willow Glen currently have poor response times even when Station 6 is fully staffed: if Station 6 were under-staffed and unable to respond, the response time to much of the area would be unacceptably slow.
If the Hose Wagon does go, WGNA will feel compelled to request that the Fire Department find another home for the Air Wagon. Yes, Willow Glen is a convenient central location and the station provides adequate parking for the Air Wagon, but it is unfair to our residents that we frequently be left underserved. The City could move the Air Wagon to some other station, but then it would probably have to provide two extra positions to support it: it seems that keeping the Air Wagon and Hose Wagon (and its one extra position) at Willow Glen’s Station 6 is the most cost-effective solution.
In summary: WGNA is pleased that Station 6 in Willow Glen is home for the Air Wagon, but only so long as it does not adversely impact our residents. The Hose Wagon, while it might be considered a quaint artifact of past times, is well suited for our quaint part of town, especially since it comes with the personnel that can also support the Air Wagon and still provide Willow Glen with adequate coverage.
Please contact me if you have any questions.
Thank you,
Dr. Lawrence Lowell Ames, WGNA President
president@WGNA.net