Staffing issues leave Pepperell fire station empty for one night
PEPPERELL - Staffing issues at the Pepperell Fire Department came to a head Sunday night, when the fire station was completely empty after 5 p.m.
"Due to staffing issues, there is no Ambulance for Pepperell we will be relying on other towns for coverage. There isn't a single person working tonight at your fire station," Pepperell Firefighters IAFF Local 5018 wrote in Facebook post.
Out of its eight full-time positions, Pepperell fire has only three filled right now. Two full time staff left over the summer and another person is on medical leave.
"I just couldn't fill it. I'm worried about running our career staff into the ground in mental health and a long with the demands of the job," fire Chief Brian Borneman told WBZ-TV.
Staffing issues are plaguing emergency services statewide as multiple departments compete for a smaller pool of applicants. Borneman says Pepperell covers the shortages by using on call and per diem staff or mutual aid from other towns.
"And we're kind of the smaller fish in the sea. So, we're competing with the bigger places all the time for that same talent pool," Borneman said.
The chief finds himself in a tough position. Even when he finds job candidates, each paramedic requires two years of training before they can start.
"If your next question is, 'what's the answer,' I don't have a good answer. I don't know what that is," he said.
Hospital closure compounds the problem
The closure of Nashoba Valley Medical Center in Ayer has compounded the problem. While Borneman says Pepperell can transport its patients to another hospital in Nashua, New Hampshire in almost the same amount of time, the closure is causing transport delays in other towns which assist Pepperell with mutual aid.
"What I really worry about is how we're so interdependent. That's across the state. All of our towns, we support them, they support us. And when their transport times become more significant or wall times at a hospital, it starts having this ripple effect across the state," he said.