Walpole Fire Department

Fire Suppression

 It has been another busy and productive year for your department. Thanks to the Town Administrator, Board of Selectmen, Finance Committee and the Town Meeting members and the taxpayers of Walpole for their continued support which allows us to maintain our level of services.

Mission Statement

The mission of the Walpole Fire Department is to protect life and property from the threat of fires, medical emergencies, natural and manmade disasters.  In order to fulfill this mission we provide planning, prevention, education, incident control and mitigation.

            Resignation

            On October 29^th Firefighter/Paramedic Michael Madruga resigned from the department to take a new position with the Belmont Fire Department.  Firefighter Madruga was a dedicated employee for the 5 years that he served the Town of Walpole.  We wish him well in his new department.

            Department Operations

The total number of emergency and inspectional services requested for 2008 was 5,256 and they are listed below.

For a summary of the 2008 Activity click here

EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES

Emergency Medical Services

Prepared and Submitted By

Firefighter/Paramedic Samuel Snyder, Emergency Medical Services Coordinator

The Walpole Fire Department continues to be one of the busiest departments in the area in 2008.  The ambulances responded to a total of 2300 incidents.  The ALS ambulance “A1” responded 1386 times, and the BLS ambulance “A2” responded 914 times.  These responses included medical emergencies, motor vehicle accidents, hazardous material incidents, structure fires, ice and water rescues, carbon monoxide alarms, as well as other requests for assistance.

Members of the department have taken much pride in their ability to provide quality medical service to the town of Walpole.  In order to accomplish this quality there has been an increase in the amount of EMS training provided to members.  Much of the training has taken place on duty through classes put forth by our medical directors Dr. Andrew Geller, Dr. Joshua Small, and myself.  The classes of 2008 included capnography, run reporting, and medication changes.  Also this year there was an extensive training program covering two months to familiarize the members with the new computerized run reporting system.  This training has been part of a program offering required training to members while on duty.  This allows members to complete the state requirements to maintain certification in house.  The growth of the EMS service training has been incorporated into the monthly training assignments of the department. 

Also provided in 2008 was an Advanced Life Support Paramedic refresher.  This 48 hour class was attended by 14 members of the department and is required bi-annually by the state.

2008 has seen an increase in the skills and equipment available to the members of the department.  There were several medications added to the Paramedic ambulance.  Paramedics were also trained in the use of capnography which is considered the “gold standard” in confirming airway status.  This is a technology used for many years by anesthesiologists in the Operating Room. 

Walpole Fire Department implemented an electronic Patient Care Reporting system (ePCR) in 2008.  This system will allow the fire department to comply with new state and federal mandates on data reporting.

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