Nearly all Mass. fire depts. fail to reach national staffing standard

Nearly all of the fire departments in Massachusetts do not meet national staffing standards, according to a survey conducted by the state fire union in the wake of the deadly fire at a Fall River assisted living facility.

Per standards set by the National Fire Protection Association , fire engines or ladder trucks should each be staffed with a minimum four on-duty members . In Massachusetts, the average number of firefighters on an engine is less than 2.5 firefighters and the average responding on a ladder is less than two, according to the survey.

The survey was conducted by Professional Fire Fighters of Massachusetts, which represents thousands of firefighters from 217 local unions . Based on the survey, PFFM President Rich MacKinnon said, more than 90 percent of departments don’