manistee regional
Fire initiative
Securing Our Safety
The Manistee Area’s fire and emergency medical services system is proposing the creation of a combined operation to improve local fire & EMS service coordination. Through shared staffing and equipment resources, we can improve the services provided to all community members in our service area in a responsive, cost effective, and operationally sustainable manner.
This initiative would unify:
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City of Manistee
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Manistee Township
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Filer Township
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Stronach Township
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Onekama Township
Note: The Little River Band of Ottawa Indians has expressed interest in participating in this initiative as well.
Initiative OVERVIEW
Since 2015, our nation has seen a significant decline of volunteer firefighters. The Manistee region has felt these impacts across all of the participating municipalities of the Manistee Regional Fire Initiative (MRFI). As a result, the region has seen a significant increase in mutual aid calls, which impacts
emergency response readiness.
This collaborative initiative is intended to establish sustainable funding, staffing, apparatus, and equipment resources to support the continuation of effective emergency response. The new operation would promote the efficient delivery of fire and emergency response services, strengthen staffing and response capabilities, expand training opportunities, and support sustainable long-term operations.
What this Initiative is Proposed to do
increase 24-hour staffing
Establish additional 24-hour staffed fire stations to support rapid and effective emergency response to the Manistee Area.
provide/replace apparatus & equipment
Combine resources to meet the Manistee Area's service and infrastructure needs. With combined resources, the region can focus its efforts on improving staffing, emergency response services, and fire prevention efforts.
improve shared serVIce & administrative standards
Align administrative and training standards to strengthen response times, emergency response effectiveness, and consistency in capabilities.
What This Initiative Aims to Address
Additional 24-hour staffed fire stations would be established to support timely emergency response throughout the Manistee region.
Resources and services would be shared among participating municipalities to support coordinated emergency response.
Aging apparatus and equipment would be replaced in order to maintain service standards and support sustainable long-term operations.
Administrative and training standards would be aligned to support coordinated mutual aid, response times, and service-level consistency.
Personnel and training efforts would be shared across participating municipalities to support staffing capacity.
Municipal fire and EMS would continue operating independently, with existing staffing and resource constraints continuing to affect long-term service sustainability.
Equipment, apparatus, personnel, and other resources would remain focused on their respective municipalities.
Mutual aid will continue to cover emergencies that exceed local capacity, but regional resources will remain strained and be deployed through inconsistent staffing models with varying levels of training, response fluency, and availability.
Future capital improvements, apparatus replacement, and staffing needs would continue to be addressed individually by each municipality.
What The Status-Quo
Means
FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)
The City of Manistee and the Townships of Filer, Manistee, Onekama, and Stronach. The Little River Band of Ottawa Indians has expressed interest in participating in this initiative as well.
What is mutual aid?
Mutual aid is a formal or informal agreement between fire and EMS departments to share resources (ex. personnel, apparatus, and equipment) across jurisdictional boundaries when emergencies exceed local capacity.
What municipalities are included in this initiative?
Information Sessions
MRFI will be hosting community engagement sessions to provide residents with objective data regarding the initiative proposal. Members of the community are invited to attend and review department enhancements and project implications.