The Haines Volunteer Fire Department is short nearly half of their volunteers this year and call volume and intensity are only increasing, former fire department chief and firefighter Al Giddings said. Chief Brian Clay says the department is short of both firefighters and EMS responders, causing his current volunteers and paid staff to withstand increasing workloads and less time off. Clay says the shortage is a result of a “change in the dynamics of the community.”

“The younger people are having families and they both have to work,” Clay said. “Their life doesn’t allow them the time to pursue something else if they wish to. This is not a job everybody wants to do. The hours, what you see, what you do, you’re going to get home at 2 a.m., 3 a.m. some nights. All hours of the day you’re on call. It’s a time requirement and there is a lot of training you have to do.”

Eight years ago, the average annual call load was roughly 250 EMS calls, Giddings said. In 2022, the fire department received 395 EMS calls and 46 fire calls. Giddings says the “intensity” of the calls has increased as well.

“We all scratch our heads on that one,” Giddings said. “It could be the elderly population. There are people that do have medical conditions that need attention and we do respond quite a bit to the elderly population. In the summertime, it gets active too. We can’t really point to one spot and say this is why this has increased.”

Emergency medical technician (EMT) Brady McGuire recently stepped down from his full-time position at the department. Giddings said McGuire’s position is “crucial” for the department, and that there will be a “very fast and hard learning curve” for the candidate who fills it. Several candidates are currently in the interview process for the EMT position, and the department could have a replacement as early as February, Giddings said.

The department has also lost former chief and volunteer firefighter Al Badgley, who suffered a major back injury this fall. Giddings says Badgley “carried a tremendous load,” and the current staff have absorbed both McGuire and Badgley’s workload, “doing the same amount of work with less people.”

“There’s a lot of work that needs to be done on a daily basis here. We are always trying to catch up and we can’t get there. There’s always stuff to do,” Giddings said.

Both Clay and Giddings claim the shortage has not hindered the department’s emergency response.

“We’re down in volunteers but our service and mission is never compromised,” Giddings said.

Clay said he has considered offering volunteer positions for people that want to help, but may not want to go into a burning building. Giddings said the department has “open arms” for “anyone wanting to be involved.”

Volunteers are asked to attend bimonthly training meetings and work with a sponsor a couple hours a week on their own time. Residents interested in volunteering can pick up an application at the fire department. Upon approval, applicants will qualify for a 12 month probationary period.

“Everybody will bend over backwards during that year to teach and help you to build you up to be a responder,” Giddings said. “It’s really a fun time. You can make all the mistakes you want. After that one year you get a badge and you are a full member of the Haines fire department.”