In part one of our report yesterday about the new proposal from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) for fire departments, we heard from Mountain Home Fire Chief Kris Quick and how the proposal will affect his department. Today, we hear from Michael Glotzl, the Gassville Fire Chief and the Chairman of the Baxter County Fire Chiefs.
The OSHA proposal is the first time regulations have been updated for fire fighters since 1980 and has been more than ten years in the making.
Glotzl says there are many good aspects to the proposal.
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He says the list of items to keep firefighters safer is lengthy.
On the other side of the coin though are many items which are ruffling feathers of many fire departments across the country, especially volunteer departments. OSHA has taken many of the National Fire Protection Administration (NFPA) standards they used, which distinguished between career firefighters and volunteer firefighters, and rolled them into one standard.
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Funding the new proposal from OSHA is going to put a huge burden on volunteer fire departments across the country, something that is not accounted for.
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Glotzl says he’s afraid the cost of the OSHA proposal, if approved, is going to fall on the citizens of each fire protection district.
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The Chairman of the Baxter County Fire Chiefs says with this proposal, he expects the trend of the number of fire departments in the state of Arkansas declining will continue.
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You can visit this story on ktlo.com to view the proposal and leave a comment for OSHA about it. The comment period is open until July 22.
OSHA Proposal
https://www.regulations.gov/docket/OSHA-2007-0073
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