Wellesley Fire Chief Steve Mortarelli during a briefing with the Select Board on July 22 said the department has been getting lots of questions from the public regarding its preparedness plans for senior living and multi-tenant housing in town in the wake of the recent fatal Fall River assisted living facility fire. He was responding to a request from Board member Colette Aufranc for an update on the topic (see Wellesley Media recording about 22 minutes in for the full briefing and discussion).
Mortarelli said the fire department, as well as the Building and Health Departments, have been fielding calls about operational preparedness, noting that all play roles in the town’s public safety plans.
He credited Fall River firefighters for their response and for saving many lives. Mortarelli also said that Wellesley is in a much different situation operationally in that it is part of a Metro Fire coalition involving dozens of fire departments that provide mutual aid to one another as needed.
“Metro Fire is the most robust mutual aid system in the Commonwealth,” he said. “At our fingertips we have access to a 10-alarm run card where we could get up to 50 apparatus” with information on where they’re coming from and where they should go. Specialists in diving, hazardous materials, and other areas are available.
“I don’t fully understand the Fall River system and mutual aid system but in Wellesley we would have more manpower than we what we probably could have tasks for at any given time. That’s the benefit of Metro Fire,” he added.
From a prevention standpoint, the fire department conducts inspections for every commercial business twice a year, checking for things like lighted exit signs and sprinkler system tags. The department has a checklist, and if anything fails, firefighters return to ensure things have been updated. Any property licensed by the Department of Public Health gets inspections four times a year. Wellesley has two full-time fire prevention members.
Looking ahead, with new personnel in numerous positions, the fire department is updating its centralized database with evacuation plans for what Mortarelli described as “target hazard addresses.” (The department doesn’t create the plans, but provides guidance on them.)
“We’re going to put ourselves in a place where nothing slips through the cracks” between the fire, building and health departments, Mortarelli said.
The fire chief also provided these updates:
- A firefighter exam will be held at Wellesley Middle School on Sept. 27. You must be at least 19 years old on the day of the exam. The department has been making a push for locals to apply and has been working on this at Wellesley High. The increasingly data-oriented nature of the job may appeal to a different pool of candidates.
- A new alerting system is on the verge of going live, as is a new reporting system that will work with a new national database.
- Wellesley’s working on a master plan to determine firefighting resource needs, including how many districts are required to provide service. The process is at the data gathering stage. Hopes are to having something in hand from a consulting firm by spring.
- The department is hopeful for delivery for a new Engine 1 by fall or winter, and second new engine could be in action within a couple of years. “We’ll be in a great spot equipment-wise,” Mortarelli said.
- The department recently held another successful Fire Rescuers camp program for kids.
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