Tag Archives: Austin Fire Department
Wednesday, January 13, 2021 by Jo Clifton
Fire
Austin firefighters donate to protect pensions
The political action committee for Austin firefighters was busy the last month of 2020, donating more than $50,000 to Texas lawmakers. Their donations included $10,000 to Rep. Dade Phelan (R-Beaumont), who was elected Tuesday to be speaker of the Texas…
Tuesday, July 21, 2020 by Nina Hernandez
Budget
Public Safety budget discussion wrestles with demands to defund APD
Chief Financial Officer Ed Van Eenoo gave the Public Safety Committee a public safety budget overview at its meeting on Monday. Much of the discussion centered around the Austin Police Department budget. Community members and some City Council members have…
Wednesday, June 3, 2020 by Nina Hernandez
Public Safety
Public safety departments run modified cadet classes during pandemic
At the Public Safety Commission’s Monday meeting, Austin Police Department, Austin-Travis County Emergency Medical Services and Austin Fire Department representatives discussed how cadet classes that were delayed due to Covid-19 (and other issues) will move forward. ATCEMS Chief of Staff…
Friday, April 17, 2020 by Jo Clifton
City Hall
Audit: AFD employee accepted gifts from subordinate
An investigative audit by the Office of the City Auditor has found that Austin Fire Department spokesperson Michelle Tanzola violated city ethics policy by accepting gifts of photographic services from an employee who reports directly to her. Tanzola has responded…
Friday, April 3, 2020 by Jo Clifton
Public Safety
No hiring freeze for public safety employees
While most city departments are exploring how to do more with fewer employees in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, Austin’s public safety departments are currently on track to continue hiring as previously budgeted. Emergency Medical Services spokesperson Captain Christa…
Friday, March 6, 2020 by Jessi Devenyns
Budget
Public safety departments present preliminary budget requests
Budget season at the city has already begun for the 2021 fiscal year. In preparation for its deep dive into budget requests from the public safety departments, the Public Safety Commission listened to preliminary budget forecasts at its March 2…
Thursday, February 27, 2020 by Andrew Weber
EMS
Austin 911 operators effectively field calls, but audit finds gaps in dispatching overall
Operators field roughly a million calls for emergency services in Austin a year. A new city report says those operators do a serviceable job of answering that glut of calls, but found a disconnect between those calls and the delivery…
Wednesday, February 19, 2020 by Jessi Devenyns
Uncategorized
Water and Wastewater Commission learns cause of foamy water
On Jan. 22, residents in South Austin reported foamy water in their taps following the Austin Fire Department’s extinguishing of a church fire. At the Feb. 12 meeting of the Water and Wastewater Commission, Rick Coronado, the assistant director of…
Friday, December 6, 2019 by Jo Clifton
Fire
Council OKs amended emergency mutual aid pact
Council gave final approval Thursday to a mutual automatic aid agreement designed to ensure that 19 fire and rescue departments throughout Travis and Williamson counties will assist each other in far-flung parts of Austin and the included counties. The city…
Wednesday, December 4, 2019 by Jo Clifton
Fire
AFD, union still at odds over interlocal agreement
Bob Nicks, president of the Austin Firefighters Association, and Austin Fire Chief Joel Baker are locked in a battle over whether the city should sign on to a new mutual aid agreement with emergency services districts in both Travis and…
Thursday, October 24, 2019 by Jo Clifton
Fire
Wildfire audit update shows more work ahead
After hearing a new report from the Office of the City Auditor on Austin’s wildfire response efforts, Council Member Alison Alter said while the report lays out appropriate next steps for the city to take, those steps are probably not…
Thursday, September 5, 2019 by Jo Clifton
Budget
Council looks at police, fire department budgets
At Council’s final budget work session on Wednesday, Deputy Chief Financial Officer Ed Van Eenoo told Council members he had learned that the city would have about $2.4 million more than anticipated when staff prepared the original budget of $4.2…
Monday, August 26, 2019 by Austin Monitor
Radio
Austin Monitor Radio: Wildfires with Justice Jones
This week, Austin Monitor reporter Jessi Devenyns sits down with Austin Fire Department Wildfire Division Manager Justice Jones. Listen in below for a comprehensive discussion about Austin’s wildfire risks, how the city is managing those risks and what still needs…
Friday, August 9, 2019 by Jessi Devenyns
Fire
AFD under fire for handling of sexual harassment claim despite policy updates
After Austin Fire Department Lieutenant James Baker pleaded guilty to hiding a camera and filming firefighter Kelly Gall in the fire station restroom, AFD revised its harassment policies and implemented the Electronic and Anonymous Reporting System. EARS is intended to…
Tuesday, July 30, 2019 by Jo Clifton
Fire
Two firefighters fired over ‘theft’ of exam
Fire Chief Joel Baker has fired two firefighters, Nicholas Schroeder and Anthony Stewart, who were attending classes on handling hazardous materials, after Schroeder allegedly stole a copy of the final exam and Stewart took photos of it. The class was…
Wednesday, May 22, 2019 by Chad Swiatecki
City Hall
Auditor finds fire department employee misused resources for family business
An investigation by the city auditor’s office found evidence that an Austin Fire Department employee misused city computer equipment and his city email account to conduct business for a company owned by his wife. In a report released Tuesday, the…
Wednesday, May 8, 2019 by Jessi Devenyns
Public Safety
Fire and police response times lagging due to low staffing
In an effort to serve citizens as quickly, efficiently and proficiently as possible, Austin public safety departments have response time goals. For the Fire Department, this means response times of eight minutes 90 percent of the time, while police should…
Friday, February 1, 2019 by Jo Clifton
City Hall
Firefighter off for one day for ‘disrespect’
After finding that a male firefighter under his command spoke in a disrespectful manner to a female firefighter, Austin Fire Chief Joel Baker suspended the firefighter for just one day, to the dismay of the female firefighter. Baker did not…
Thursday, December 20, 2018 by Jessi Devenyns
Fire
2019: AFD’s new chief prioritizes communication
After just over five months with an interim chief, the Austin Fire Department finally has a permanent leader. As the year winds down, Joel Baker assumes his role as fire chief at the department amid an environment of transition and…
Wednesday, November 14, 2018 by Jessi Devenyns
Fire
‘Mega-fires’ are real, but their size is anyone’s guess
When representatives from the Austin Fire Department spoke at the last meeting of the Public Safety Commission, they alluded to a “mega-fire” they said was imminent in West Austin. Although the term may sound alarming, Justice Jones, wildfire mitigation program…
