ATLANTA — Three Atlanta Fire and Rescue stations are closed as the department struggles with staffing and a fleet of broken-down engines and ladder trucks.
Atlanta Fire and Rescue Chief Roderick Smith informed the Public Safety and Legal Administration Committee of his decision during Monday's meeting.
The three stations include Station 22 on Hollywood Road, Station 23 on Howell Mill Road and Station 30 on Cleveland Avenue.
Councilman Dustin Hillis, who is the the Chair of the Public Safety Committee, acknowledged this problem didn't just pop up overnight but it's something the city and AFR have been dealing with for over a decade.
Smith told the committee as of Monday they have 17 trucks out of service. He confirmed eight of their 31 engines are not running, which is about 25 percent, and nine of their 15 ladder trucks are out of service, about 60 percent.
"Right now I think we're down to two or three fully operational ladder trucks in the whole city," Hillis said.
Smith said assured that people are answering and arriving to the calls.
"You just don't have the ladder trucks there," he said to the committee.
Hillis asked the chief about how AFR is working around the shortage in its fleet.
Smith explained the department is using a modified response where firefighters are sending the closest three engines and the closest three aerials to the call from varying fire stations in the city.
So far this year, AFR has responded to close to 25,000 calls, according to Smith. He said less than one percent of those had been for actual fires but pointed out the number of their fire calls had almost doubled compared to last year.
He said EMS calls account for about 40 percent of their call volume. He said the majority of their calls are what they classify as "other" -- car crashes, elevator alarms, etc.
Councilman Antonio Lewis explained to the chief he took issue with the AFR closing Station 30 on Cleveland Avenue.
"We need (station) 30 to open and I'll tell you why, the lights, it lights up the whole coroner. The elements that's going on across the street from where (station) 30 is now we've never had before until (station) 30 closed," Lewis said.
When asked to clarify what he meant, Lewis said via email that it was a public safety concern.
"The lights being off almost make it look like a third world country at night. I've had issues that I've never had and I need the station open for more than one reason," Lewis explained via email.
11Alive reached out to the AFR on Monday for addition information on the closure of the three stations but didn't hear back.
Hillis said he's very concerned with the current situation at AFR when it comes to their response and fleet.
"It is an issue that I'm sure it does you (Chief Smith) more than anyone, it keeps me up at night very honestly," Hillis said.