Merced Fire set department record in 2020 for calls responded to. What’s behind the rise?
The Merced Fire Department responded to a record number of calls in 2020 — all while navigating new safety challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The 11,218 calls for service last year reflected a growth in volume that was a bit higher than typical, said Chief Derek Parker. The new Merced fire chief began his role Jan. 4 on the heels of the new year.
“That’s just kind of an industry trend, more people (are) utilizing the service,” Parker told the Sun-Star.
While calls predictably rise by about 4% each year, 2020’s increase was at least 5%.
Parker attributed the escalation mostly to a climbing quantity of calls for nuisance fires. Such calls are often due to warming fires started by homeless Merced residents who are trying to cook food or keep warm, he said.
“That’s really been a bit of a draw, lots of nuisance fires,” Parker said. “It’s just significantly higher.”
For example, last year the department received more calls from people reporting smoke in a field, under a bridge or in a vacant building, where it’s illegal to start a fire.
“There’s been a lot of efforts to house the homeless and find shelter for them,” Parker said.
A 2020 tally of the county’s homeless population has not yet been made available by the Merced City and County Continuum of Care.
Numbers from 2019 showed an increase of more than 18%, resulting in up to 607 unhoused county residents. The City of Merced decreased from 310 in 2018 to 295 individuals experiencing homelessness.
A comprehensive understanding of how COVID-19 impacted homelessness across Merced County is yet unclear.
Calls picked up later during the year
Although Merced ultimately ended the first year of the pandemic with a new call record, last year actually started off with less calls than expected compared to more normal years.
Requests for service — especially medical aid calls — slowed as the first big COVID-19 shutdown began in spring, when stay-at-home orders went into effect, schools closed their doors and many workers either went home or lost their jobs.
“As things started to normalize, they started to pick back up,” Parker said.
A similar trend was seen at city fire departments across the state, he said.
Other than the growth in nuisance fires, Parker said Merced Fire responded to a normal proportion of different types of calls.
A 1994 graduate of Merced High and former firefighter with the Merced County Fire/Cal Fire, Parker returned to the city after most recently serving as a battalion chief for the Sacramento Fire Department.
Parker took on the job after former Merced fire chief Billy Alcorn accepted a deputy chief position at the Fresno Fire Department.
