Butler County Suffers Fire and EMS Shortage
June 8, 2022 at 11:30 a.m.
Cities such as Fairfield, Monroe, Hamilton, Middletown, and West Chester are in search of first responders to meet the growing demands of the public, with 911 calls increasing during summer months, finding individuals to respond has been an issue in recent years.
Monroe is offering a $2,000 scholarship to train those interested in becoming Firefighters, Emergency Medical Technicians, or Paramedics. The deadline to apply to the scholarship is June 15. Fairfield recently announced their efforts to hire more first responders earlier this year, they have successfully hired some but are still searching for additional first responders. Hamilton, desperate for quality care providers, opened their hiring process which included paid training for those wishing to become first responders. Both Middletown and Fairfield have posted numerous dispatcher openings over the past few months, both are hiring for dispatcher positions again.
Being a first responder is often a difficult job with low pay, little benefits, long hours including 24 hour shifts, and extreme trauma; the hard truth is that not many are willing to deal with these conditions when they are unable to pay their bills on their Fire and EMS wages. It can be difficult to have such a stressful job, however the reward of helping the community is often what keeps first responders active. Communities can help with their fire and ems retention rates by voting to approve any fire and ems levy that is on the ballot, donating gift cards to local grocery stores, or a simple thank you.
If you are considering a career as a first responder, there are numerous opportunities in the area. Butler Tech offers training for fire, ems, and police.
