Palm Springs fire officials push for more staffing to keep up with city growth

Fire officials in Palm Springs are pushing to grow the department's staff to keep up with growing demand for emergency services in the city.

Crews said they're pushing to add 15 new firefighters, which would allow them to respond more efficiently when emergencies break out.

Palm Springs Fire Association President Brandon Battaglia said staffing presently is adequate, but adding one person to each fire apparatus would make a big difference, including whether the first firefighters on scene can enter a burning building.

"To go into any burning structure, you need to have two people in and two people out. So the first arriving unit currently, we do not have two in and two out...until another apparatus gets there," Battaglia said. "That could make [the difference between] a single bedroom fire and an entire structure fire...It allows us to enter structure immediately upon arriving on scene and potentially save a life."

In 2021, Palm Springs Fire Department responded on average to 1.7 calls every hour. The number of calls for service jumped 18.9%.

In a proposed budget plan reviewed by city council last week, $1.3 million was allocated to add nine new firefighters, but city leaders considered as few as six.

Councilmember Geoff Kors noted the need for more. "That's where we're short," he said. "Our city is not the city that we're staffed at currently in that department."

Fire crews said their goal is to elevate Palm Springs firefighting to the gold standard. "We are trying to be the best fire department that we can be – a world class fire department for our community," Battaglia said. "Ultimately, that's what matters most of us."

City council will discuss the proposed budget again at its meeting this Thursday. Firefighters said city leaders have been supportive but they hope to make one last push before the budget is finalized at the end of this month.