By Joseph V. Maruca
Writing for theNVFC
I’ve read媒体上的许多故事about the about the decline in the number of volunteer firefighters in the United States. I’ve also attended dozens of roundtables focused on the difficulties of recruiting new volunteers. But recruitment isnotthe taproot issue facing the volunteer fire service. It’s a symptom of multiple other underlying problems.
城市化
在我看来，其中最大的问题是志愿消防部门运作的小城镇的可行性。在新英格兰，我最熟悉的地区肯定是如此。新英格兰大部分地区的志愿火灾和EMS部门正在努力生存，主要是因为随着越来越多的人从农村地区迁至城市地区，他们的城镇正在死亡。
I suspect this is also a major problem in other parts of the country. The data certainly suggests that it is. Consider: In 1980, the urban population represented about 70 percent of the country’s total population. In 2010, it was about 80 percent.
Niskanen Center:Demographics and the Relentless Process of Urbanization
自2010年以来，估计城市人口已增加到83％至85％。估计预测，城市化的增长速度约为每年0.9％。而且，除了缅因州和佛蒙特州外，没有数据表明城市化正在放缓或稳定。
在大约同一时期（1980年至2010年）中，志愿消防员的数量从884,600下降到768,150。2017年，国家消防协会（NFPA）估计志愿者人数为682,000。值得注意的是，与此同时，我们看到人口从农村到城市地区的10％转变，我们也看到志愿消防员的数量减少了12％。我认为志愿者下降的一个重要原因是因为否则愿意并且能够担任志愿者消防员已经搬到城市地区的人们已经搬到了城市地区。
In 2015, the国家志愿消防委员会（NVFC）进行了一项全国性研究，表明我们社会中大多数人口统计学的意愿都具有志愿消防员的意愿。这项研究表明，千禧一代，妇女和少数民族对志愿者的意愿很大。但是，如果这是真的，为什么千禧一代，妇女和少数民族没有志愿服务？我建议，千禧一代和少数民族不自愿的主要原因是他们已经搬到了城市。潜在的志愿者不会住在我们需要志愿者的地方。
This is an incredibly difficult challenge to address. There are no easy solutions in the short term. We need to solve the economic problems of our rural and small-town areas in order to have healthy and effective volunteer fire departments. And we can’t do it alone. We need to team up with economic development groups, the Chamber of Commerce, the USDA, and the National Rural Economic Developers Association to solve the problem.
RELATED
Aging
城市化是主要问题，但不是唯一的问题。我们人口问题的另一个方面是美国农村正在衰老。年轻人不仅搬到城市，而且退休人员也搬到了小小的，风景优美或低成本的地方。
在我的社区的3200人,30%是机汇er age 65. This is nearly double the statewide demographics, where 16.5 percent of people are over 65. This demographic shift leaves us with a smaller base of potential volunteers, even with a stable population. And, at the same time, this demographic shift is increasing our demand for services. Persons over age 65 make up 50 percent of all ambulance trips in Massachusetts. As our town ages, we get more ambulance calls.
According to the USDA’s 2018 publication“Rural America At A Glance,”rural counties make up nearly 85 percent of the U.S. counties with more than 20 percent of their residents over age 65. Most of these older-age counties are in scenic (retirement) areas or in areas experiencing chronic population loss (rural to urban migration). According to NFPA data, in 1987 only 37 percent of firefighters in communities under 2,500 were over age 40, and today 53 percent are over age 40.
Maine, a state that is not urbanizing, is an example of how aging is going to impact volunteer fire departments and their communities. Maine is now classified as super-aged, meaning that more than one-fifth of its population is over 65. This is resulting in worker shortages across all industries in the state. Just as its health care industry can’t find enough workers, Maine’s volunteer fire departments are struggling to find youthful volunteers. By 2026, another 15 states – most of which largely rely on volunteer firefighters – are projected to join Maine in being classified as super-aged. This demonstrates how the volunteer firefighter recruitment issue is bigger than just the fire service.
长期计划
我会向您授予您不知道消防部门需要志愿者的人们存在一个真正的问题。我们确实需要更好地与我们的社区进行交流，并建立对更多志愿者需求的认识。为此，NVFC的Make Me A Firefighter campaignis an excellent tool that every volunteer or combination fire department should be using.
We can and should also do a much, much better job of recruiting women. Here’s an area in which the volunteer fire service can make a difference in the short term, to great effect.
充其量，当今大多数志愿消防部门的女性含量为5％至10％。这种赤字可能与在当地和全国范围内的营销差以及社区层面的领导力不佳有关（另一天的主题）。
但是，如果您的城镇失去企业，工作和年轻人，让我一名消防员也无法正常工作（即使您的部门成功招募了更多的女性）。
这就是为什么,当我们或一次e being confronted with immediate problems (mustering enough people to fight a fire safely), wemustthink about the long term as well. We have to focus on the larger issues facing the towns we serve, and we have to get involved in finding the solutions to those challenges. That’s how the volunteer fire service will survive.
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The Volunteer Firefighter Training Crisis—and a Solution
Volunteer Fire Departments: Bait-and-Switch and a Question of Identity
Joe Maruca是鳕鱼角的组合消防局西部巴恩斯特布尔（MA）消防局的负责人。他从1977年开始担任志愿消防员，直到2005年成为首席。他是国家志愿者消防委员会（NVFC）的主任，并代表NFPA 1917技术委员会的NVFC。乔（Joe）是雅茅斯波特（Yarmouthport）克罗威尔律师事务所的退休律师，也是律师，专注于房地产规划领域。
