When an emergency call comes into a local 911 center, a quick series of events - complete with dispatchers, sirens, pagers, a lot of technology and some fast-thinking - begins immediately.
Within minutes, crews of volunteers have interrupted their dinners, pulled themselves out of bed or been excused from their workplaces to make it to the scene of the car crash, house fire or medical emergency.
In recent times, however, that process has been hampered as the number of volunteers dwindles, the average age of current volunteers increases and the amount of money donated to local departments drops.
That doesn't mean, though, that calls for assistance are down.
In Bedford County, for example, the 911 Center receives emergency calls from all of Bedford County and sometimes even neighboring areas like Blair, Huntingdon, Fulton and Somerset, as well as after-hours calls for Children and Youth, Mental Health/Mental Retardation, Area Agency on Aging, the county probation office and magisterial district judges.
"Anything that people think is an emergency, we get those calls," Dispatcher Harry Corley said.
Dispatcher Kim Murgi has worked for the 911 Center for almost 30 years. She said she has noticed a difference recently in the length of time it takes for a company to get a crew together, especially during the day.
Huntingdon County Emergency Management Director Adam Miller said one of the fire departments in his area saw an 80 percent drop in funds from an annual fundraising event.
"That's super significant," Miller said. "When you have a reduction in fundraising income, you have to really look hard at what services you can provide to your community. These are extremely tough decisions made by extremely well-meaning people who have volunteered for the job."
Bedford County Emergency Management Director David Cubbison calls 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. on weekdays - the time when most volunteers are more likely to be working - the "critical time."
"That's when help is needed by everybody," Cubbison said. "You're going to have a minimal response. Most EMS or fire companies will be able to get somebody out, but it may be a little delayed."
Because several companies have very low membership, two or more companies may be called at the same time when an incident is reported, Cubbison said. Most fire calls during weekdays, for instance, automatically start out as three-alarm notices.
Martinsburg Volunteer Fire Company Chief Randy Acker said his department is relying more on neighboring companies to assist.
"As fire chief, you don't know whenever you have a call if you're going to have enough manpower to go to it," Acker said. "It's always a challenge of sort of relying on experience and knowledge to get through it. Whenever the whistle blows, are we going to have enough response to take care of it?"
The Martinsburg com-
pany has seen a decrease in donations this year.
He said the yearly fund drive covers pretty much the entire operation, including utilities, insurance on the building and trucks, as well as equipment.
"We just watch what we spend money on. We're trying to get through it like everybody else," Acker said.
Bedford Fire Company Chief Bill Foor said the department also is trying to make do with what it has.
"A lot of volunteers are having to drive further to get into work now than they used to," Foor said. "More businesses are a little bit more reluctant in letting volunteers go. We're seeing less volunteers during the day being able to leave work to be able to come to calls."
Foor said that even with some members dedicating up to 30 hours a week to fire hall activity, it's still tough filing paperwork; doing office work, maintenance and fundraising; and answering numerous calls throughout the day.
"We're there to help people," he said. "We want to help where we can. I think people think that when they call 911, we're just going to show up. They don't realize we're all volunteer. They don't realize we're leaving our work, leaving our family."
Kimberly Ettinger, director of communications with the National Volunteer Fire Council, said retention and recruitment of volunteer crews has been declining for about 25 years.
"The current state of the economy is affecting fire departments," Ettinger said. "There are so many conditions there now that weren't necessarily there before - longer commutes, having two or three jobs. Since 2001, there have been increased training requirements for firefighters. It takes more time to be a firefighter now."
Some communities, Ettinger said, are offering incentives such as tax breaks, service awards, nominal reimbursement for responding to calls and internal recognition awards to keep volunteer departments going.
The National Junior Firefighter program also helps by getting youth interested in emergency services at earlier ages.
"They're going to form a connection with the fire service, and hopefully as an adult, they'll become a volunteer firefighter or support it in their community," Ettinger said.
Martinsburg's fire company has had six junior firefighters join the department in the past 18 months, Acker said.
Anyone interested in volunteering can call 800-FIRE-LINE and reach the Pennsylvania Fire and Emergency Services Institute, which connects potential volunteers with local companies.
Acker urges interested people to stop by the station or attend a Tuesday night training at his fire hall.
"It is a challenging job," he said. "The work is very strenuous. Helping the community is the best part - feeling you did your best and maybe helping someone through a tough time. It's just helping the community."
Tina Walter has been a member of the Southern Cove Volunteer EMS and Fire companies for more than 25 years. She joined shortly after marrying the current fire chief, saying it was easier than getting upset with him for being gone all of the time.
"It's hard on us as a family," Walter said of the time she and her husband dedicate to the department's emergency calls, fundraising and training. "It's something we really enjoy doing, [but] sometimes you just get overwhelmed by it. Those turkey dinners have to be served, that work has to be done. You just have to keep pushing and pushing and pushing."
Walter said it's frustrating to have more than 5,300 people in the department's coverage area and only a combination of 25 or so people who volunteer for both services.
"We get very little help from the community," she said. "We're expected to put out and give up more of our time than the average person. If every person in this community would give even an hour a month or even one day a year, we wouldn't have to do near the work we have to do."
Most of what volunteers get out of their service, Walter said, is personal gratification. She said they use their own vehicles to respond to emergencies and pay for their own gas.
"It is rewarding to do something where you can help your community. ... Once you get involved with an organization like this, it really is a brotherhood. There's not a tighter group of people than the ones you trust your life with and run into a burning building with. It's almost a family."
Mirror Staff Writer Wendy McCardle Zook is at 946-7520.
"You're dealing with the caller who's so upset," Murgi said. "We're trying to get all the equipment needed. It can get frustrating. It's just taking longer to get help to somebody. With volunteers, they just can't go on every call."
