On Saturday April 2, 2016 around 9 pm the Lehigh Acres Fire Department responded to a house fire at the corner of Ogden Avenue and Devon Street.
But the closet fire engine by 1.6 miles did not response to the fire at all. Because Chief Wayne and Battalion Chief Delgado placed fire engine 105 out service that day, not for mechanical reasons but to save to personal costs.
Fire Chief Wayne is calling it “creative staffing”. So what is your life and property worth, when fire station 105 engine is not manned all the time?
Residents around Lehigh Acres Fire Station 105 on Bell Blvd have been seeing jumps in the cost of homeowner insurance of 80 to 150% in the last year. Lehigh Acres Gazette has received multitude of inquiries about insurance rates and the Lehigh Acres Fire Dept.
So we have done a little snooping around and what did we find a “To Whom It May Concern” letter penned by Lehigh Acres Department Fire Marshal Ken Bennett, dated Effective June 2015.
Will called the Fire Department to verify the letter and Chief John Wayne was on vacation, but one of the administrative staff did verify the letter and stated it is still in effect.
It states, ”At this time Station 105 located at 636 Thomas Sherwin Ave S. Lehigh Acres, Fl. 33974 is also staffed 24 hours per day, seven(7) days a week with an ALS Ambulance. Where staffing levels will allow, a fire engine will be placed in service on a daily basis.”
This statement means that this fire truck is not in operation 24/7 only the ambulance is.
Out of all six insurance companies we talked to, all have now adjusted the area around station 105 a PROTECTION CLASS 10 which the most expensive to have. WHY?
According to one Insurance agent in town we cannot fix this issue only the fire department can.
This is not want the voters voted for in November 2014 then the Fire Fee Assessment passed. Fire Chef John Wayne and the Fire Board promised fully man stations so this would not be an issue. .
Wayne was quoted to say, it would less expense to pay the Fire assessment than having your homeowner insurance go up. Gee, it looks like same voters get both.
So does Wayne owe the taxpayers around Station 105 a refund of their fire fee assessment?
Now the community has lost a house that can be replaced but next time it could be your home or family life….. so What’s your Life Worth now?
I do not generally comment on this BLOG, however, when I see erroneous information being published…sometimes I do. Most of the time Mr. Anderson is attacking me personally…that is fine (sticks-and-stones) I don’t care about that nonsense. Unfortunately, the Gazette once again posts another non-accurate article on this BLOG in reference to the Fire District. We are unable to discuss this fire because it is under investigation, however, the initial caller to 911 witnessed the fire was already through the roof before the call was made to report the fire. When roofs collapse and/or are unstable, this is a safety issue for our crews and we fight these types of fires in a defensive mode if warranted(attacked from the exterior of the building). The roof of this structure was already compromised before the call was made to 911. There are no fire hydrants in the area, so crews had to shuttle water with water tenders…this is always a problem in the community and nothing the Fire District can control. The Fire District has a phenomenally low fire loss value in this community as a result of our efficiency in dealing with limited water supplies and our well-trained crews. The letter that Mr. Anderson is referring to is old and outdated. St. 105 has been manned with an Engine most of the time since October 2015. Yes, there are times when staffing levels do not allow this to happen, however, it is infrequent. An updated letter has been provided to ISO and residents should see an adjustment in their ratings around certain areas of St. 105 as a result, in the near future. We continue to hire and replace vacant positions, with another hiring to be completed probably by June 2016. As a result of a recent hiring St. 105 will be manned with an Engine 24/7/365. “Get the Facts Lehigh” Feel free to call the Fire District if you want accurate information at 239-303-5300. It would be nice for the Gazette to post some “positive” articles referencing the local Fire/Rescue services being provided to the residents and visitors of Lehigh Acres…just a thought! Thank you.
First Thank you Chief for your comments. Second if the house fire is still under investigation and the investigation can not be talked about how would you (the Chief) know that the “the roof of this structure was already compromised before the call” are you clairvoyant, you were on vacation that day.
Chief Wayne thank you admitting the existence of the June 2015 letter and the list of people about the insurance issue. The Chief must also have short term memory loss, you stated, ” The Fire District has a phenomenally low fire loss value in this community.” But the district was fought thousand of acres of vacant lot fires costly the fire district millions and even lost a life because your firefighters were told not to enter the house fire.
Mr. Anderson,
I have access to the fire reports and have reviewed this matter, therefore I know the “facts” regarding this issue.
“Short term memory loss” I do not have…”fire loss” in the community is related to the estimated value of structures prior to a fire minus the estimated “fire loss” to said structures after a fire…this results in an estimated “save” value to the District. It has nothing to do with “suppression” costs.
Again, more misinformation.
That sounds like common core math if I’m not mistaken.
What a joke.
How does someone losing their property save the fire district money again?
So if my house is valued at $100k before a fire….a fire happens…I lose $50k in estimated losses in the fire…..I somehow saved the district $50k???
Please tell me more of how you save me and the district money.
All you can do is consume.