HARLINGEN — The fire department is managed to efficiently assure the safety of citizens and firefighters.
That’s how Fire Chief Roy Rubio responded to local union claims of short-staffed fire stations.
Earlier this week, the union released a 54-page survey in which many members criticized Rubio’s leadership, questioning whether the department’s staffing was adequate to fight two structure fires at the same time in different parts of the city.
In the department staffed with 110 firefighters, 68 of the union’s 96 members responded to the survey, which was presented to City Manager Dan Serna.
On Tuesday, Rubio referred questions to Serna, who declined comment, calling the firefighters’ concerns “a personnel matter and an internal issue.”
But yesterday, Rubio defended his decision to move some firefighters from the department’s downtown station to the new station on the city’s fast-growing west side.
“It’s a better use of resources,” Rubio said in his office at the city’s Emergency Operations Center.
Before he was hired in 2014, the city had planned to open a fire station on the west side, Rubio said.
The Insurance Services Office, of ISO, which helps determine insurance rates, recommended the city open a west side fire station to service the fast-growing area.
But the city, he said, did not have available funding to staff the proposed station.
So Rubio came up with a plan to move three firefighters and a pumper truck from the downtown station to staff the west side station.
“We need to look at the big picture,” Rubio said. “You have to consider growth — providing services within the city limits.”
Rubio kept six personnel, a brush truck and a support vehicle at the downtown station.
“I didn’t delete personnel. I reassigned them,” he said. “If we move a truck, it’s just down the road. You’ve got to deploy resources to the best of your ability.”
Depending on the number of firefighters who report to work, every day the department staffs 27 to 33 firefighters per shift, Rubio said.
At each of the city’s eight fire stations, he said, three to four firefighters staff each shift.
“All eight stations have one engine,” he said.
Meanwhile, the city’s mutual aid agreement with area cities provides backup fire protection within the city limits, Rubio said.
“We’re one team. All the cities in the Valley depend on mutual aid,” Rubio said. “We’re not an island. We’re not alone.”
Rubio said he is pushing to upgrade the city’s fire trucks and equipment.
Every year since he took office, the city has purchased a fire truck, he said.
This year, the city’s proposed $42.5 million general fund budget earmarks $587,000 for a new fire truck and $114,000 for breathing equipment.
“We provide good service,” Rubio said. “We have the concern of our citizens and men always — that’s our priority. The safety of our men is covered.”
Rubio did not respond to other criticism including concerns surrounding his leadership and the morale of the department.
