The fire department in the United States is a public or private organization whose main mandate is to provide emergency human assistance. This is the human assistance that requires the rapid response because short delays would lead to, or cause an increase in fatalities. These services include fire firefighting and conducting rescues. The local government, on the other hand, may be plainly described as ‘the government on the ground’ because it is an arm of the main government that is in direct contact with the citizens. It provides government amenities to the people directly especially in areas with high populations of people like municipalities. The local government and the fire department, therefore, interact with each other and with other organizations to provide services to residents of an area. The following paper will discuss the ways in which the fire department functions as part of the local government. It will elaborate on how the fire department helps the local government carry out its responsibilities to citizens. It will also illustrate how fire department depends on other local government entities.
Responsibilities of the local government met by the fire department
The fire department carries out inspections on buildings and general structures to determine their safety levels in case of an emergency situation (Rau, 2010). The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) has established safety codes and standards that are to be followed when building residential and commercial structures. These codes and standards explain, in detail, how preventive facilities such as fire escapes should be constructed or installed. They also prescribe fire-fighting equipment to be incorporated in the buildings depending on the amount of fire risk that the building faces. These inspection obligations are assigned to the county or local government but delegated to the fire department due to their expertise in the field. The fire department also inspects and approves construction plans when it has been convinced that those plans have effectively factored fire risks and that they have installed structures to minimize any damage that would be caused by a fire (Rau, 2010). Traditionally, this was also the mandate of the local government architects. Other activities presently implemented by the fire department shifted from the local government include research, training of skilled personnel and public education on safety measures and procedures.
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Firefighters are usually the first official emergency team to arrive at a fire or accident scene (Tool, 2002). This is because they are the most readily available rescue agencies in terms of reach and speed of response. In most cases, they encounter victims who require urgent medical assistance such as first aids and emergency care. They are, therefore, expected to take up the duties that were originally under the jurisdiction of the paramedic's department. These duties include an assessment of the condition of the victims and a quick decision to offer medical aid to the best of their abilities. Firefighters also implement rescue operations on accident cases other than fires. Chemical spills, flood channels, structure collapses and car crashes may have no incidences of fire but require the expertise of firefighters to rescue trapped victims. Traditionally, emergency medical care is a service that is supposed to be delivered by the local government, but the changing trends require that all firefighters be qualified emergency medical technicians before they can be considered for a post in firefighting.
Relationship between the fire department and other local government entities
Most fire departments obtain their revenues by billing the Medicare and Medicaid insurance providers. These payments are submitted through the healthcare section of the services rendered by the local authority (Vince, 2011). It is, therefore, through the partnerships with the healthcare institutes that the departments ultimately receive their dues. Other revenues are obtained from donations to the local government revenue department which, in turn, transfers the amounts to the firefighting institutions. It is worth noting that the local governments finance the public fire departments that are under their control. Ultimately, the fire department heavily relies on the accounting entities of the local government complex to fund their activities and equipment acquired (Vince, 2011). Other facilities required by the firefighting departments like water to put off fires and gas for the vehicles are provided for by the local government entities. Accounting for all these accruals and prepayments incurred during their billings are important when making their financial analysis and reports.
As earlier indicated, the fire department engages in activities that aim at minimizing fire risks and those that seek to reduce damage and ensure safety when a fire starts (Tool, 2002). To achieve these objectives, they need to engage in aggressive public education procedures. They, therefore, require the help of the local authorities in setting up successful awareness campaigns. This help may be in the form of social amenities like conference halls or solicitation of the masses by influential the government agencies. While carrying out research activities, logistical information is also provided by the municipal authority in place. They also require instructing personnel, well-versed with the environment of the area, to carry out successful research proposals (Tool, 2002). These research findings and educational activities are important to the department as it helps deal with fires by not allowing them to start in the first place. Fire departments depend largely on volunteers to effectively fulfill their obligations. Many volunteers are sourced from the healthcare sector as it receives the highest number of volunteers compared to any other discipline.
It is important to note that most relationships existing between the fire departments and the other local government entities are usually on the need-be basis. This is because most of the communities in the U.S have embraced safety measures, significantly reducing the number of fire cases reported per unit time (Tool, 2002).
Administrative responsibilities that can be liabilities to the local government
The administration activities carried out by the fire department include supervision, formulation of budgets, enactment of policies and human resources management. It is important to note that these responsibilities can be liabilities to the local government if not performed correctly.
The supervisory roles are, in most cases, stretched beyond the ranks of the fire department. The local authorities may assign an oversight role to a firefighting administrator to, for example, oversee the implementation of precautionary measures on a building under construction (Rau, 2010). Other supervision protocols may end up being overlooked by the officer such as the strength and stability of the building due to lack of experience in architectural engineering. A collapse of the building may cause unprecedented political harm to the elected local government authorities.
Management of human resources for the local government agencies may come with an unprecedented cost to the agencies and the local government at large. Employment of incompetent and unethical staff into areas requiring a high level of expertise would cause dissatisfaction by members of the public. This would translate to the lack of confidence in the local authority structures in place. Fraudulent staff would embezzle the funds from the coffers of the administration. Loss of public funds would raise many credibility issues and prosecution against the officers mandated to protect the interests of the society on their behalf. Due to the liabilities that may arise out of this, it would be risky for local government officials to rely on employees from the fire department to implement administrative duties on their behalf (Vince, 2011).
Conclusion
The fire department plays a critical role in the safety of the residents of the areas they operate in. When not saving lives, or putting out fires, these devoted heroes are researching to establish possible risks and neutralize them where possible. At other times, they are busy educating the members of the public on how to maintain safety for themselves and others. The fire departments also require the input of all societal stakeholders to ensure they keep delivering this vital service. The local government entities should learn how to depend on their personnel and resources and ensure the independence of this department.
References
Rau, D. M. (2010). Fire safety . New York: Marshall Cavendish Benchmark.
Tool, D. R. (2002). The Fire department (4th ed., Vol. 1, Ser. 2012). Kearney, Neb.: HSS Pub., a subsidiary of Hability Solution Services, LLC.
Vince, H. (2011). Local government . New York, (30 Rockefeller Plaza, Room 3101): The Commission.
