Lives on the Line

“We did the best with what we had, and what we had was not enough.”

That’s how Fall River, MA Local 1314 President Michael O’Reagan remembers the deadly assisted-living facility fire that left 10 people dead. Despite heroic efforts – and even off-duty fire fighters rushing to the scene to help – the crew simply didn’t have the manpower to save every life.

For fire fighters on scene, the problem was painfully clear: there weren’t enough personnel to do the job.

Tragically, Fall River is not alone.

Across North America, fire fighters are responding to more calls, more complex emergencies, and more high-risk situations than ever before – often with fewer personnel than safety standards recommend. From Los Angeles to Winnipeg, Atlantic Canada to Austin, IAFF members are confronting the same problem:  too few fire fighters arriving too late to emergencies that demand more people on scene.

“When fire fighters arrive without enough personnel, critical tasks get delayed,” General President Edward Kelly said. “And when that happens, lives are at risk.”

That’s why the IAFF is leading a growing effort to secure safe staffing in communities across the United States and Canada.

The stakes couldn’t be higher.

Call volumes are rising, the responsibilities placed on fire fighters and emergency medical workers are expanding, and high-rise and industrial emergencies are becoming more frequent. Synthetic products burn hotter and faster, generating intense heat, energy, and toxic smoke. Fire fighters must coordinate closely, quickly combining ventilation, search, and suppression efforts.

When departments are understaffed, that coordinated response becomes far more difficult.

And the consequences can be deadly.

According to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), civilian fire deaths are up 16% since 2014.  Fire service experts say that faster, properly staffed responses are one of the most effective ways to reverse that trend.

A cornerstone of the IAFF’s staffing initiative is the work of the Technical Assistance and Information Resources (TAIR) Division, which helps IAFF affiliates evaluate how their fire departments are staffed and deployed.

Using Geographic Information System (GIS) analysis, TAIR examines station locations and response performance to identify coverage gaps and determine whether departments can properly assemble the personnel needed to respond safely.

The findings are often presented through detailed maps and deployment studies that show how staffing levels affect response times and coverage across a community. Locals can use that information when making the case for safer staffing with city leaders and policymakers.

Those analyses are measured against national fire service deployment standards that define how many fire fighters should be on scene – and how quickly they should arrive – to manage emergencies safely.

In late 2025, the NFPA introduced Standard 1750 – a new consolidated standard governing how career fire departments organize and deploy personnel for fire suppression, emergency medical response, special operations, and fire prevention activities. It brings together Standards 1710, 1720, and 1730 into a single framework and establishes clear benchmarks for the number of fire fighters needed on scene – and how quickly they should arrive – to safely and effectively manage emergencies.

The standard calls for every engine and ladder company to be staffed with a minimum of four fire fighters and for the first crews to arrive quickly enough to begin operations within minutes of a 911 call.

But fighting a fire safely requires more than the first arriving crew. As additional companies arrive, they must assemble what fire service experts call an “effective response force” – the number of personnel needed to perform multiple critical tasks at the same time. Those tasks include search and rescue, fire attack, ventilation, ladder operations, incident command, and rapid intervention for fire fighters operating inside the structure.

NFPA 1750 outlines how many fire fighters are needed for different types of incidents:

These numbers aren’t arbitrary. They’re based on decades of research showing the staffing needed to ensure a fast and effective response. When departments do not have enough personnel on duty, assembling that response force takes longer – delaying rescues, slowing suppression, and increasing the danger for both civilians and fire fighters.

“We’re measuring fire departments against the standards that already exist,” said Rob McClintock, Assistant to the General President for TAIR. “We’re showing exactly how staffing levels affect response times, coverage gaps, and the ability to assemble an effective response force that they can take to the bargaining table, budget hearings, and city hall.

“It’s about giving Locals credible data and their employers clear solutions,” added McClintock.

In many communities, TAIR’s findings become the foundation for staffing proposals, contract negotiations, or public campaigns aimed at strengthening fire department resources and improving public safety.

Locals across North America are sounding the alarm on the growing staffing crisis facing communities and are taking action.

In Atlantic Canada, the Atlantic Provinces Professional Fire Fighters Association (APPFFA), launched a “4 Fire Fighters 4 Your Safety” campaign to educate communities about safe staffing standards.

Through social media, advertisements, and rallys, the APPFFA – with support from the IAFF – is making staffing a priority for their community. Kelly, General Secretary-Treasurer Frank Líma, and 15th District Vice President Chris Ross joined leaders this summer on Prince Edward Island to kick off the campaign.

Other affiliates are successfully negotiating staffing guarantees through collective bargaining.

In Alberta, Edmonton, AB Local 209 and Lethbridge, AB Local 237 successfully secured contract language guaranteeing four fire fighters on every apparatus in Edmonton and Lethbridge. Local 209 President Greg Rehman said, “Maintaining adequate staffing will go a long way to ensure our safety on the job.”

And in Winnipeg, Manitoba, a sustained IAFF-backed campaign led city council to approve hiring 80 additional fire fighters, a major step toward correcting decades of understaffing.

In Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, an IAFF-led study found the fire department’s staffing well below NFPA standards, with only about 18 fire fighters per shift versus the roughly 30 recommended. Response times also fell short of the NFPA four‑minute benchmark.

Local 735 President Lou Jimenez said, “We operate with staffing levels that simply do not match the size, the complexity, and the growth of modern Bethlehem.”

Although no major staffing increases have been approved yet, advocacy by the IAFF and Local 735 has placed the issue squarely on the city’s agenda and laid the groundwork for future budget and staffing increases.

Other Locals are taking their case directly to the voters.

After the city manager and fire chief in Austin, Texas, proposed budget cuts to reduce four-person engine staffing, Local 975 mobilized hundreds of members to push back. The Local launched a petition and ballot initiative to protect minimum staffing levels and prevent fire station closures unless the city faces a verified financial crisis.

The city capitulated and kept staffing levels in place in a new CBA signed with the Local in December.

A 2024 GIS study conducted by the IAFF found the Los Angeles City Fire Department would need approximately 4,000 additional fire fighters – nearly double its current staffing – and more than 60 new stations to meet NFPA response benchmarks and adequately serve the city.

Building on those findings, Los Angeles Local 112 is launching a ballot initiative to address decades of underinvestment in the department. The measure would generate hundreds of millions of dollars annually to hire fire fighters, build stations, purchase apparatus and equipment, and add more mechanics.

“Staffing is a nationwide issue, but the problems here in Los Angeles are worse than I’ve seen in any other major American city,” said Líma, a Local 112 member. “UFLAC has been beating the drum for decades – but 60 years of underinvestment in the LAFD has proven that this city is incapable of properly funding its fire department.”

Staffing challenges are not limited to large metropolitan departments.

Smaller municipalities like Durango, Colorado, face similar staffing shortfalls that put communities at risk.

Local 5554 led a recent effort to pass ballot measures to fund staffing and new fire stations. Local President Nick Knowlton credited the IAFF, careful campaign planning, voter targeting, and grant research for the success.

“All of it helped us succeed and keep our community safer,” he said.

Understaffing also takes a direct physical toll.

When departments are understaffed, it hampers multiple fire ground tasks, causing a dangerous ripple effect. Fire fighters on scene are forced to take on multiple roles in a high-stress environment, leading to increased cardiovascular and physiological strain. That exhaustion raises the risk of injuries and life-threatening events, including heart attacks.

Understaffing also affects whether and when fire fighters can rehabilitate on scene, further increasing the danger to those working there.

“The true impact of understaffing is often overlooked,” said Sean DeCrane, Assistant to the General President for Health and Safety. “The impact is absolutely reflected in the operational ability of fire fighters to carry out critical tasks on the fire ground.”

In addition to GIS studies and strategic campaign support, the IAFF is offering ready-to-use tools Locals can apply to advocate for minimum staffing.

In 2025, the IAFF introduced its “Securing Minimum Staffing” toolkit, a comprehensive guide designed to help Locals and state and provincial associations advocate for staffing levels that align with NFPA standards.

 The toolkit includes research, campaign messaging, and practical strategies affiliates can use when making their case to city councils, legislatures, and the public.

Affiliate leaders can access the toolkit by logging into iaff.org and visiting the Leader Resources page. Locals interested in requesting TAIR services can contact their District Vice President.

The deadly fire in Fall River brought renewed attention to the issue of fire fighter staffing – and the consequences when departments do not have enough personnel to respond.

Standing with Local 1314 members hours after the fire, Kelly said the incident underscored the need for departments to have the staffing required to respond safely.

“What happened in Fall River is a tragedy, but it’s not an outlier,” he said. “Staffing issues are a problem across the United States and Canada – and the time for these conversations is before, not after, a tragedy. Cities, states, and provinces need to prioritize staffing to protect their populations.”