Fire depts. responding to record number of calls




Chesterton Fire Department

Chesterton Fire Department

Fire departments in Porter and Chesterton are on track to exceed a record number of calls for 2021.

In his September report to the Porter Town Council, Fire Chief Jay Craig noted that the summer had been very busy for his department. For June July and August, the department’s chief, one fire fighter and 20 volunteers responded to 253 calls.

“In June we broke our monthly record of 80 calls a month by responding to 87 calls and then again in August with 90 calls,” Craig said. “As of October 7, we are at 638 calls so far. We are on pace to be over 800 this year.”

Prior to 2018, Porter’s first responders averaged around 500 calls per year. The record was 551 calls in 2007. In the last five years, 2018 was the highest in number of calls with 685.

Over the last five years, the Porter Fire Department has averaged 173 calls for the same calendar period per year. 2016 was the lowest of the past five years, with only 142 emergency calls for the summer months.

In 2020, Craig’s crew responded to 209 calls in June, July and August.

Chesterton Assistant Fire Chief Nate Williams has observed similar numbers.

For June through August, the number of calls this year was an increase of 79 incidents over the same period in 2020.

“Our 2021 year to date total calls are 1,363 and at the same time last year were at 1,166,” Williams said.

Craig said medical calls are his department’s primary response. In the summer, these calls peak. He attributes the summer statistics to an increase in visitors to the beaches and parks. Additional traffic also results in a spike in auto accidents, Craig said.

“Overall, we have seen a large increase in call since 2018,” he said. “I am not really sure why. I can speculate it could be due to our community getting older and our area seeing more visitors.

Williams agreed but offered another possible explanation for an increase in calls, the nature of which have not changed.

“If I were to speculate, I would say that people limited travel and exposure more in 2020 and have returned to a level of normalcy in their lives,” he said. “Statistically we have had an increase in calls every year. As the population grows and development increases so does the impact on public services.”

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