Ten firefighter positions have now been eliminated in the city of Folsom, but that cost-cutting move is actually allowing the city to put an additional fire engine back on the streets.<\/p>\n
The additional engine restores coverage in parts of the city that were left without an engine after budget cuts last year.<\/p>\n
“We’re really excited that we’re able to have that resource back in play,” Lawlor said.<\/p>\n
In October 2025, the city eliminated one of its five fire engines, as Lawlor said it dealt with budget constraints and a deficit.<\/p>\n
For a time, that left the entire part of Folsom south of Highway 50 without any vehicle carrying water to put out a fire.<\/p>\n
More recently, the engine at Station 39 was eliminated, which is in the Empire Ranch neighborhood \u2014 one of the areas at greatest risk of a wildland fire.<\/p>\n
“There was no fire engine in this immediate area to respond to any sort of emergency,” Lawlor said.<\/p>\n
Now, the department has found a way to restore the engine without adding to the city’s costs by changing the type of personnel that operate its three ambulances. <\/p>\n
Instead of being staffed by two firefighters trained as paramedics, ambulances will now only have one paramedic and one emergency medical technician, which costs less money.<\/p>\n
But EMTs cannot provide advanced life support care to patients, like starting an IV or administering prescription drugs. \u00a0<\/p>\n
“The impact to the community is going to be very minimal,” Lawlor said.<\/p>\n
The staffing change allows firefighters who were on ambulances to be placed back on an engine and ultimately saves the city more than $46,000 a year.<\/p>\n
“That cost savings is what’s a big part of the ability for us to put this fire engine back into service,” Lawlor said.<\/p>\n
The Folsom City Council unanimously approved the staffing change last month.<\/p>\n
“I think this is a great way to bring fiscal responsibility and accountability into staffing our public safety,” Vice Mayor Anna Rohrbough said.<\/p>\n
The fire department says the new paramedics and EMTs will also be given promotion opportunities to become firefighters in the future as new positions open up.<\/p>\n
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