National Fire Prevention Week is Oct. 4-10.

When Whitehall Township Fire Department Chief David Nelson was a child, he loved watching a series called “Emergency!” and hoped to one day ride on a firetruck. After he joined the fire department, Nelson said he got hooked and enjoyed testing his abilities, helping those in need and learning new information, as well as being a part of a second family.

Unfortunately, due to a shortage of volunteer firefighters - not only in Pennsylvania, the state with the first volunteer fire department founded by Benjamin Franklin - but around the world, fire departments are rethinking the way they operate.

According to Nelson, Pennsylvania has gone from more than 300,000 volunteers in the 1970s to less than 38,000. Currently, fire departments across the United States are made up of 64-percent volunteer stations and 10-percent career stations.

Nelson said fire departments are moving to a combination model with both career and volunteer firefighters, which make up 26 percent of departments in the country.

Nelson said the Pennsylvania State Senate is indecisive about passing SB 1273, legislation that would permit local fire departments to merge into larger - possibly countywide - departments. They could combine resources, erasing the need for duplicate equipment, such as costly specialty trucks like aerials and rescues. Saving money on equipment would help to pay for career firefighters as well.

“They are the way of the future,” Nelson said. “It is great for the citizens of these communities, and it allows for a guaranteed response at all hours and days of the year, as well as faster response times. A fire grows two times a minute, so it is extremely important we get water on the fire as quickly as possible.”

Whitehall has six stations including Fullerton, West Catasauqua, Hokendauqua, Egypt, Cementon and the fire police, with an average response time of nine minutes.

The average age of WTFD firefighters is between 45 and 50, with some as young as 16 and the oldest in his 70s. Nelson said WTFD has 85 volunteers with various levels of experience, including 40 that have been trained for interior firefighting.

According to Nelson, as the interior volunteers age and there aren’t enough younger firefighters to replace them, this could create a dangerous situation for both firefighters and the public.

Nelson said he recently heard a fire call come in for a car accident with entrapment in a nearby town. The local department’s chief was the only one from his station able to respond, and he had to contact two nearby departments to get resources, a process that took 25-30 minutes.

“This had no bearing on their department or their qualifications - it was purely staffing, especially during the day,” Nelson said. “These are the issues the volunteer fire service is facing today.”

Nelson said if volunteer numbers continue to decline, there could eventually be no one to respond to emergencies.

He said the next step would be to consider paying firefighters, which small municipalities won’t be able to afford. Nelson emphasized the importance of passing SB 1273 before it is too late and is asking the public to contact their senators.

“The volunteer firefighters have saved the citizens billions [of dollars], if not more over these years,” Nelson said. “If it is not addressed soon, some towns will be left with no fire service or fire service that is contracted with neighboring departments farther away. This will lead to longer response times. There are already fire departments that have closed their doors.”

Nelson is disappointed COVID-19 has paused the department’s fire safety education programs, former Chief Robert Benner’s legacy.

Normally, the month of October is when WTFD travels to Whitehall schools and child care centers to give lessons in fire safety with the use of interesting props like a smoke trailer or by introducing them to Smokey the Fire Dog.

The department is considering creating a fire safety education video to distribute to schools in lieu of in-person visits while restrictions remain in place.

In addition, WTFD offers fire safety classes for child care teachers, home hospice nurses and nursing home staff.