Atlanta Fire Rescue has ‘significant mechanical issues’ with firetrucks, lacks full fleet

ATLANTA — A recent audit of the Atlanta Fire Rescue Department by the Atlanta City Auditor found that in addition to funding issues and a lack of a fully operation fleet, the city’s Public Works department did not have a plan or strategy ready to replace the fire department’s trucks.

As of January, “nearly one-third of fire apparatus were beyond their lifecycle.” At the end of 2023, a “Public Works’ consultant identified an immediate need to replace 15 fire apparatus.”

Currently, only three fire trucks are set in reserve, and no ladders are available if the need arises.

“Because of the lack of working fire apparatus, there is an increased safety risk for fire department staff and the public,” the audit says.

Channel 2′s Tom Jones was at the Bell Collier Village apartments on Howell Mill Road on Thursday, speaking with disgruntled former residents. The apartment went up in flames late last month.

“I am very angry,” one resident told Jones.

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The audit said that due to the lack of a replacement strategy, AFR was “using fire vehicles beyond their lifecycles and, in some cases with significant mechanical issues.”

According to the report from the auditor’s office, of the 58 firetrucks AFR was slated to purchase, a lack of funding resulted in only 30 being procured. The current fleet has 67 engines and ladders in active service.

From 2018 to 2023, the report said “18% of fire apparatus had not received preventive maintenance services for over a year.”

Additionally, in the past year, 21% of the fleet remained out of service for a median time of 12 days while waiting on repairs or maintenance.

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Funding was also an issue when it came to retention of personnel and recruitment.

The fire department told city auditors that part of the problem with maintaining the fleet was the high turnover in the shop.

“Fire and Fleet Services leadership each told us that turnover in the fire shop was a problem. Our review found the shop experienced turnover in 7 of 11 technical positions from 2018 to 2024. Public Works recently adjusted salaries to improve competitiveness,” auditors said.

Auditors also reported that the department needs to revamp its record retention policies, noting that fire crews “crews have not consistently recorded apparatus inspections” and that daily inspections were needed to ensure proper fleet readiness.

The report said fire department and public works leaders were in agreement on the auditor’s recommendations to fix problems the department is facing, and that steps were already being taken to do so.

While the audit report on the fire fleet covered the years of 2018 to 2023, a previous audit on fire hydrants in the City of Atlanta and their maintenance by AFR also had officials expressing concerns over efficacy.

The June 2019 audit focused on fire hydrants found that “The Atlanta Fire Rescue Department uses unreliable technology that fails to capture all inspection results and inconsistently records inspections on hydrant cards.” More specifically, auditors reported that “the Atlanta Fire Rescue Department does not consistently communicate hydrant repair requests to Watershed Management.”

The auditors also reported at the time that the Atlanta Department of Watershed Management had decreased median fire hydrant repair times by more than 80% from 2015 through 2018, citing a repair backlog due to poor staff retention.

The report added a recommendation that “the Atlanta Fire Rescue Department enforce hydrant card verification to ensure that inspections and needed repairs are accurately documented in the hydrant database.”

In the wake of the audit, and the process of reviewing the findings with the various city departments involved, auditors said all of their recommendations regarding fire hydrant maintenance were agreed to.

However, in December 2023, Channel 2 Action News requested information from AFR and the auditor’s office about how many fire hydrants were out of use temporarily or permanently, but the exact number was not provided.

DWM told Channel 2 Action News that more than 99% of public fire hydrants were fully operational. The audit performed by city officials found that, in 2019, there were about 16,000 fire hydrants in use in Atlanta, though “we also found that the population of public hydrants within the city does not align between Fire Rescue and Watershed Management, which could result in some inspections or repairs not being completed.”

Channel 2 Action News has reached out to the Atlanta Fire Rescue Department and the Department of Public Works for details on how this process will be implemented, how many personnel and how much time will be needed to fully staff and equip the fleet, and how much funding is needed to purchase and hire the necessary equipment and technicians for full operations.

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