{"id":49319,"date":"2025-12-01T20:26:09","date_gmt":"2025-12-01T20:26:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/49319\/"},"modified":"2025-12-01T20:26:09","modified_gmt":"2025-12-01T20:26:09","slug":"bethlehem-fire-officials-warn-of-staffing-crisis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/49319\/","title":{"rendered":"Bethlehem fire officials warn of staffing crisis"},"content":{"rendered":"

BETHLEHEM, Pa. \u2014 A two-alarm fire Sunday afternoon on East Elizabeth Avenue has renewed urgent calls from Bethlehem firefighters and their supporters for the city to increase staffing, following what union leaders described as a \u201cnear perfect storm\u201d of simultaneous emergencies that left no units available for additional calls.<\/p>\n

The blaze at Pints & Pies Pub broke out shortly after noon, drawing every available fire crew in the city, according to Fire Chief Matthew Griffin. The department responded around 12:20 p.m. and found heavy fire and smoke coming from the building\u2019s walls. Crews extinguished the fire around 2 p.m., Griffin said. No injuries were reported, though the restaurant was evacuated and its reopening date remains unclear.<\/p>\n

As firefighters worked the scene, two additional calls came in elsewhere in the city \u2014 one on Linden Street and another on Summit Street on the South Side. With all units tied up at the Elizabeth Avenue fire, dispatchers were unable to immediately send crews to the third call, according to the Bethlehem Fire Buffs and firefighters union IAFF Local 735.<\/p>\n

Union leaders said the situation underscores long-standing concerns about staffing levels.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis morning was the closest we\u2019ve come to the perfect storm,\u201d Bethlehem Fire Buffs wrote in a post shared Sunday. \u201cNext time may not be so lucky.\u201d<\/p>\n

Staffing concerns escalate<\/p>\n

The department is budgeted for 104 personnel, but an independent study completed by the International Association of Fire Fighters found Bethlehem should have at least 113 firefighters to safely meet the city\u2019s needs. The city staffs 18 firefighters per shift, below the National Fire Protection Association\u2019s recommended 30, the union said. Bethlehem also operates with fewer crew members per engine than national standards advise.<\/p>\n

The study, which analyzed city incident data from 2021 through 2024, found Bethlehem firefighters are meeting the critical four-minute response benchmark only 80% of the time \u2014 short of the NFPA\u2019s 90% target.<\/p>\n

At a recent City Council budget meeting, Local 735 President Lou Jimenez said firefighters have lost 10 positions and a fire station over the past 15 years.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re human beings with families. We\u2019re telling you we don\u2019t have enough people to work,\u201d Jimenez told council. \u201cIt\u2019s all about money. And it\u2019s going to take a firefighter to die in this city for everybody to learn that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jimenez criticized what he described as overreliance on financial data and \u201coutsider\u201d analysis when firefighters themselves have repeatedly warned of risks.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m tired of being treated like a number. My members are not numbers,\u201d he said. \u201cThis city deserves the staffing that they need.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jimenez said an internal study conducted by the union began in May 2024 using the same computer-aided dispatch data the city intends to review in its own ongoing analysis.<\/p>\n

Residents urge action<\/p>\n

Firefighters weren\u2019t the only ones pressing City Council to act. Several residents voiced concern about safety if staffing levels remain unchanged.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf nothing changes it is not a question of whether a preventable tragedy will occur, it\u2019s a question of when,\u201d said Rose Jimenez.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs a father and a resident, I feel cheated,\u201d said Anthony Castillo, responding to reports of understaffed firehouses.<\/p>\n

City Council member Grace Crampsie Smith said she plans to introduce a budget amendment that would add four firefighters to the department in 2026.<\/p>\n

Mutual aid questions linger<\/p>\n

Union leaders and supporters also questioned the city\u2019s lack of a standing mutual-aid agreement, which could allow nearby departments to automatically assist during major incidents. Currently, mutual aid must be specially requested, according to the Bethlehem Fire Buffs.<\/p>\n

They said Sunday\u2019s series of overlapping calls demonstrated the risk of operating without such agreements \u2014 and without additional firefighters.<\/p>\n

City Hall weighs costs, future study<\/p>\n

City business administrator Eric Evans said the administration is conducting its own study of the department\u2019s staffing and operational efficiency, with results expected next summer. Evans estimated that adding four firefighters next year could cost roughly $500,000 and cautioned council members against relying on one-time revenue sources to cover recurring personnel expenses.<\/p>\n

In a social media statement following the meeting, Jimenez said he did not regret speaking forcefully about the issue and vowed to continue advocating for staffing increases.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are not a liability \u2014 we are a source of value and service that cannot be measured in dollars,\u201d he wrote. \u201cWe are not just numbers.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Isabel <\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

Isabel Hope is a journalist and website designer based in Bethlehem, PA. She graduated with a degree in journalism from The University of Alabama in 2022, where she served as News Editor of the student newspaper. Isabel has lived in the Lehigh Valley for three years and is passionate about reporting for the communities she now calls home.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"BETHLEHEM, Pa. \u2014 A two-alarm fire Sunday afternoon on East Elizabeth Avenue has renewed urgent calls from Bethlehem…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":49320,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[153,155,154],"class_list":{"0":"post-49319","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-bethlehem","8":"tag-bethlehem","9":"tag-bethlehem-headlines","10":"tag-bethlehem-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49319","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=49319"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49319\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/49320"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=49319"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=49319"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=49319"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}