Fire departments report rise in calls throughout 2024
Multiple fire departments across Butler County saw a notable increase in emergency calls last year.
Officials from the Cranberry Township Volunteer Fire Company, for example, handled a record-breaking 1,183 fire-only calls in 2024.
“I think one of the biggest contributing factors we have is that there’s constant growth (in population),” Scott Garing, the township’s chief of fire and emergency services, said. “The second factor is that we had the fiber-optic upgrades going on in Cranberry Township. Those upgrades have caused a drastic increase in struck gas lines over the last year.”
Gas inquiries made up a large portion of the 223 calls relating to hazardous conditions. The department also responded to 69 fires — including 20 structure fires — as well as 166 rescues and 65 service calls.
That played a significant role in the department recording 45,391 total hours of work, which included 28,870 total staffing hours.
Unlike some other local departments, Cranberry’s department is staffed 24/7, which means members are sent to locations across the region.
“I know that fire departments are traveling farther than they ever have before just based off of the manpower situation that you see,” Garing said. “We’re going farther for mutual-aid requests just based off of the fact that people don’t have a whole lot of firefighters anymore.”
Emergency staff and township supervisors have set a master plan that details how the department operates on a yearly basis, while simultaneously planning ahead for what’s next.
“Every year, we’re planning for the next year or we’re planning for multiple years out,” Garing added. “For example, we just bought a rescue truck last year. That rescue truck is a result of planning. We know that it won’t come in until 2028, but we bought it last year because that’s what it takes to make sure that we have it on time with our replacement schedule.”
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Ted Mohrbacher started his morning taking the saws from one of the Park Fire Station engines to inspect and make sure they are in working order on Wednesday, Feb 5. 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Volunteer firefighters from Station 21, also known as the Park Fire Station, spent the morning doing truck inspections on Wednesday, Feb 5. 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Nathan Nicklas from Station 21, Park Fire Station, in Cranberry Township checks tanks from one of the engines on Wednesday, Feb 5. 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Ted Mohrbacher tests saws in front of Station 21, also known as the Park Fire Station, in Cranberry on Wednesday, Feb 5. 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Nathan Nicklas hands equipment down to Ted Mohrbacher as they do engine inspections at Station 21, also known as the Park Fire Station, in Cranberry Township on Wednesday, Feb 5. 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Volunteer firefighters at the Park Fire Station in Cranberry Township spent the morning inspecting the fire trucks and its various components on Wednesday, Feb 5. 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Nathan Nicklas from Station 21, Park Fire Station, in Cranberry Township makes sure that ladders are easily accessible during an engine inspection on Wednesday, Feb 5. 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Nathan Nicklas from Station 21, Park Fire Station, in Cranberry Township makes sure that ladders are easily accessible during an engine inspection on Wednesday, Feb 5. 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Photos to honor the fallen firefighters from 9/11 are in every locker of Station 21, Park Fire Station, in Cranberry Township on Wednesday, Feb 5. 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Volunteer firefighters at the Park Fire Station in Cranberry Township spent the morning inspecting the fire trucks and its various components on Wednesday, Feb 5. 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Davis Smith, left, and Ted Mohrbacher inspect the jaws of life instruments used in accidents from an engine at Station 21, Park Fire Station, in Cranberry Township on Wednesday, Feb 5. 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Nathan Nicklas from Station 21, Park Fire Station, in Cranberry Township checks saws from the engines on Wednesday, Feb 5. 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
Meanwhile, the Butler Bureau of Fire reported 2,350 calls in 2024, 1,327 of those related to EMS assistance. The total number is a slight increase from the 2,183 calls in 2023.
“In terms of our incidents looking at the comparison between the years, they’re roughly the same percentages as far as the type of incidents that we’ve responded to,” Butler chief Chris Switala said.
Switala also shared thoughts similar to Garing’s when it came to the increase in call volume.
“I would attribute that to two reasons, and No. 1 is some of the growth and development within the county,” he said. “When you have more people, you’re going to have more incidents that are going to occur. The second thing is, with some of the declining volunteer response, there are departments utilizing more mutual aid, putting more units from neighboring fire stations on some of their calls just to make sure there’s adequate personnel responding.”
While the number of calls varies from month to month, even smaller departments reported seeing an uptick.
Butler Township’s Volunteer Fire District reported 805 incidents, with the busiest month coming in July with 94 calls.
The Slippery Rock Volunteer Fire Company finished last year with 676 calls, which set a record.
“The increase in calls vary from weather to more mutual aid to different departments due to just everybody in general needing more assistance due to the lack of membership throughout (the county),” Ryan Hanchosky, Slippery Rock Volunteer Fire Company chief, said.
He said there was an increase of about 100 calls from 2023 to 2024, in part because Slippery Rock’s department joined Butler County’s Water Rescue Team and now counts those calls for its total number at the end of each year.
Hanchosky stressed that local fire departments need the support of municipalities to function properly going forward.
“The municipalities that we serve, not just Slippery Rock, but all over, really have to make sure they’re supporting their fire departments when it comes to needs and stuff like that,” he said. “That really makes a fire department run in the long run.”
With manpower dwindling and more emergencies being reported now than ever before, local fire departments across the county are always seeking new members.
“Joining your local fire department will likely be one of the best things you’ve ever done in your life,” Garing added. “However, I encourage everybody to make sure when they join, they go through some entry-level training.”
