The Porter Fire Department responded to a record number of calls in 2007: 551, compared to the old record of 458 set in 2006, an increase of 20 percent.

The number of calls to which the PFD has responded annually has been steadily increasing. In 2005 it totaled 428 calls, or for the first time an average of more than one per day; in 2004, 358 calls; and in 2003, 348 calls.

EMS assists accounted for nearly half of the calls in 2007: 251 or 46 percent. Vehicular accidents accounted for another sizable portion: 73 or 13 percent.

On 50 occasions, or 9 percent of the calls in 2007, the PFD was placed on standby. And on 16 occasions, 3 percent of the calls, it responded to fire alarms.

The PFD responded to three structure fires in 2007, compared to four in 2006.

Other calls last year:

•17 downed power lines.

•13 natural gas leaks.

•13 water searches.

•10 water rescues.

•Nine vehicle fires.

•Eight arcing power lines.

•Seven carbon monoxide alarms.

•Six smoke investigations.

•Five assists to police.

•Five false alarms.

•Five grass fires.

•Four each of flammable liquid spills and dumpster fires.

•Three each of citizen complaints, ice rescues, and hazardous conditions.

•Two each of electrical problems, rubbish fires, oils spills, equipment fires, and wrong locations.

•One each of public assistance, wind damage, prescribed fire, overheated motor, and cooking fire.

The majority of the calls, 434 or 79 percent, were in Porter; 32 or 6 percent, in Westchester Township; 23 or 4 percent in Chesterton; 16 or 3 percent in Portage; 10 or 2 percent at Mittal Steel; and 8 or 1 percent in Dune Acres.

The PFD also responded to five calls in Liberty Township; four each in Burns Harbor, Union Township, and Lakes of the Four Seasons; three in Pine Township; two each in Beverly Shores, Ogden Dunes, and Washington Township; and one each in South Haven and Kouts.

The average response time per call last year was 4:48 minutes, compared to 4:02 in 2006, with an average of 7.29 firefighters responding per call, compared to 7.88 in 2006. The PFD spent a total of 343 hours, 26 minutes in 2007, at the scenes of emergency calls in 2007, and a total of 2,751 man-hours, 23 minutes. One firefighter was injured last year, compared to none in 2006. The PFD dedicated 1,255.5 man-hours to training in 2007.

The PFD received 38 mutual aid calls in 2007 and gave 76.

The PFD estimated total losses by fire last year at $344,900, compared to $187,500 in 2006, with a total of 25 fire investigations and 52 man-hours devoted to the investigation, compared to 16 investigations in 2006 and 24 man-hours.

The Dive/Rescue Team, meanwhile, responded to 26 calls in 2007, compared to 12 in 2006, an increase of 117 percent: 12 water searches, four vehicle search-and-recovery operations, three water rescues, three ice rescues; and one each of drowning, weapon search, canine rescue, and watercraft rescue. The Dive/Rescue Team dedicated a total of 264 man-hours to training. It has eight ERDI certified divers, one of them a new one; and six dry-suit certified divers.

PFD vehicles were driven a total of 22,138 miles in 2007, compared to 20,789 in 2006, an increase of 6 percent. They consumed 1,951.3 gallons of unleaded and 660.9 gallons of diesel fuel.

Posted 2/6/2008