The fire chief of Bellevue thinks there could be a better way to keep the village safe.
Chief Jack Mlnarik hopes to staff the department full-time next year.
He says they currently respond to more than 800 calls a year and the village continues to grow.
He notes firefighter response time drops from five to six minutes when crews are at the station to 12 to 13 minutes…when crews have to come from home.
He says during the hours they’re not fully staffed a Battalion chief responds to an emergency first.
But Mlnarik says he can’t do much because he doesn’t have the right equipment.
The village administrator says the board is going to put some numbers and a contract together.
