The city of San Diego is commissioning its own fire deployment study. It will come from Citygate Associates, the same company that prepared a similar report for the county last spring.
But San Diego Fire and Rescue Department Spokesman Maurice Luque said this report will look at issues specific to the city like the geographic layout, where the concentrations of populations and current stations are.
“What response times are for different areas of the city and where do we need to focus most of our efforts first because of longer response times,” he said.
Luque said it’s possible the study could lead to the city establishing its own standards of coverage. Right now the department operates under national guidelines that call for responding to 90 percent of fires within five minutes. The department meets that goal about half the time.
The study will cost about $75,000 and take six months to complete. Luque said it will provide a blueprint for what the department needs to do in the future. But he said people should not get their hopes up that all the recommendations will be accomplished.
“This is just a study,” he said. “There is no money to do anything with what the study might determine.”
The fire department is currently operating under a rolling brownout plan. Up to eight engines a day are being idled in an effort to save money.
